Tampa Tribune said to be considering pared-down daily paper
St. Petersburg Times media critic Eric Deggans wrote last week about a possible downsizing of the daily Tampa Tribune.
Deggans reported:
My inbox has been buzzing with rumors that the Tampa Tribune may soon begin publishing as a one-section broadsheet newspaper weekdays, with very few stories “jumping” or continued off the front page. Under this scenario, weekend papers would remain the same and some specialized sections might also publish on Wednesdays.
I asked Tribune Executive Editor Janet Coats about the rumor, and she declined to speak about specifics.
…”I think everybody’s looking at paging,” she added, noting the impact of redesigns at Tribune Co. newspapers such as the Orlando Sentinel and Chicago Tribune. “Changes to the paper that we deliver, you’re constantly looking at that now. But that’s one of those things where, when we come to a final decision, I’ll be talking my readers and not yours first.”
Oooh, snap!
Seriously, though, University of South Carolina j-school professor Doug Fisher adds in his Common Sense Journalism blog:
It’s more than rumor. From contacts inside the Newscenter: They’ve been prototyping a one section paper with a few longer stories on front (even fewer of which jump) and nothing much longer than a few inches inside.
As described by eyes that have seen it: One section for everything, though business and sports have separate covers inside the main section. An all-local front, with only two stories jumping. Inside, are what are described as “charticles” and briefs, with few stand-alones more than a few inches.
…Saturdays and Sundays will have stand-alone sections, with feature sections only on weekends as the Home and Flavor sections are combined into a Sunday tab. Oh, and the width gets trimmed again, too.
Read Deggans’ piece here. Find Fisher’s piece here.
