The Atlantic asks “can America’s paper of record survive the death of newsprint?” (hat tip to Steve):
Virtually all the predictions about the death of old media have assumed a comfortingly long time frame for the end of print the moment when, amid a panoply of flashing lights, press conferences, and elegiac reminiscences, the newspaper presses stop rolling and news goes entirely digital. Most of these scenarios assume a gradual crossing-over, almost like the migration of dunes, as behaviors change, paradigms shift, and the digital future heaves fully into view. The thinking goes that the existing brands — The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal — will be the ones making that transition, challenged but still dominant as sources of original reporting.
But what if the old media dies much more quickly? What if a hurricane comes along and obliterates the dunes entirely? Specifically, what if The New York Times goes out of business — like, this May?
UPDATE: NYT response to the Atlantic piece and commentary from Henry Blodget.