Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey has made no secret of his disdain for the news media, so when legislation that could hurt the state’s newspapers appeared suddenly this week, fingers pointed at the governor’s office.
Democratic lawmakers and newspaper industry officials said they suspected that Mr. Christie was pressing for quick passage of a bill that would eliminate the requirement for public notices to be printed. The change could cost the state’s already-strapped newspapers millions of dollars in advertising revenue.
“It’s a broadside against a free press, nothing more, nothing less,” said Assemblyman John Wisniewski, Democrat of Sayreville. “I think it’s revenge.”
Mr. Wisniewski, who is campaigning to succeed Mr. Christie in 2018, said he had heard from fellow lawmakers in Trenton that the bill came from the governor’s office. It is scheduled for hearings in the Legislature on Thursday, indicating that it has the support of President Stephen Sweeney of the Senate and Speaker Vincent Prieto of the Assembly, both Democrats.
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Publishers Notes: It's about time elected officials cut off the failing newspaper industry. Public and Legal Notices are no longer read in newspapers because no one is buying them. The majority of people are now going to social media/blogs to get their non fake news 100 to 1. Cut the newspapers off, I say and waste no time doing so. I'll add, the NORMAL rater for a bankruptcy in a newspaper is, (GET THIS) around $7,000.00. An Obituary averages $300.00. The blogs do not have the overhead and can blow away the prices of the Main Stream Media. Our taxes, (nation wide) would drop in the billions if they simply required a certain amount of traffic and the LOWEST BIDDER. Bring it on!
Ever think about all the jobs you're getting rid of Mr. Editor?
ReplyDeleteJoe,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you 100%.
Cut off this "forced revenue" into the failing newspapers.
I think a lot of government departments HOPE that no one reads their notices in the newspapers... That's one reason they get away with so much!
ReplyDelete3:55, aka EBT Blogger, First of all it says "PUBLISHERS NOTES" not Editor. Secondly, the ONLY jobs left at the Daily Times pays peanuts. While we have watched them go from 250 jobs in Salisbury down to less than 25 jobs now, I think the EBT employees left there saw the writing on the wall over the last 10 years, don't you?
ReplyDeleteThat being said, they disappear, SBYNews creates new and better paying jobs. We are the future, not the past.
The time has come to shut these 4 page newspapers down. It's time businesses realize the difference in traffic we receive verses television and print news.
newspapers are dead and don't realize it yet...
ReplyDeleteole jake day was having a good time a few days ago on delmarvanow talking smack about you and the crime rate
ReplyDeleteI hope pres. Trump has IRS shut down all political action 501 c 3 and 4 non profits.
ReplyDeleteGannett jobs are plentiful wherever they own newspapers because printed news is becoming a thing of the past. Rarely does anyone look at the legal ads anyway. Just watch people's comments on here when they think local government is about to pull the wool over their eyes with a new project they hadn't heard of and don't want.
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't had to publish legal notices, you have no idea how much they cost. A legal notice about an estate costs about $1,600 wit the daily times. All the foreclosure notices, sheriff's sales, etc. all cost substantial sums. These notices are required by law and should be repealed
ReplyDelete