Reader comments
Deseret News changes to address
revenue decline

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Matt | 8:58 p.m. July 8, 2008

It's a good news day!!!!!

I read your website just to stay abreast of the foolishness that is your readership. I wouldn't dream of allowing one red cent of my money head into the LDS, Inc.'s coffers.

Good news I say!

Wrongly directing blame | 9:03 p.m. July 8, 2008

Anyone who blames Cannon or someone other than the McCarthys running the local newspapers doesn't know what they are talking about. None of these people in charge of the papers have anything to do with revenue declining. It's all about how businesses advertise, how those selling stuff advertise and how readers get their information. Most of this stuff is available now in many forms because of technology. So why do people think they need to throw out cheaps shots at Cannon or at the Mormon church. You might be next to lose your job because of the economy, and that won't be the fault of Cannon or the church.

Cannon's business | 9:02 p.m. July 8, 2008

I have a hard time swallowing the comments that Cannon is not a businessman. The problem is he is not a journalist. All he can do is cut costs, because he doesn't know how to improve the journalism. He's too much of a businessman to make a newspaper soar. If the DMN were into improving its reporting, with some real vision, it would knock the socks off the Trib in this market.

Comments continue below

Happening All Over | 9:04 p.m. July 8, 2008

Folks, what's happening at the Deseret News is happening at large and small papers all over the country. I used to be a journalist and am well aware of the trends--having been squeezed out of the field because of a layoff at my paper several years ago, in fact. I'm not defending Joe Cannon's record elsewhere (it's certainly open for debate!), :) but the fact is, *under the current journalism business model,* he and the DN had no other choice.

What journalism needs is a new business model to address online readership. Sadly, as a Detroit news executive recently and accurately said, there isn't one. Online readers are making hard-copy subscriptions outdated and undercutting traditional ad revenue. To make matters worse, newspapers and the news media aren't proactive--they're reactive. They don't have a clue how to make money from their online editions--and online subscriptions don't work.

Journalism as we know it is slowly dying, from the cynical perspective, or being transformed, from the optimistic perspective. Transformed into what? We'll see, one way or the other!

Toria | 9:12 p.m. July 8, 2008

I enjoy reading Deseret News articles on the internet nowadays, and reading all the posts from crazy bloggers. It all makes for a very interesting evening. Thank you, Deseret News.

I'm truly sorry for those who have lost their jobs at D.N.... That is indeed very sad. God bless them.

Dr Don | 9:14 p.m. July 8, 2008

What killed the paper for me was when NAC went to end-of-the-driveway delivery.

Reading too much into this | 9:29 p.m. July 8, 2008

What a bunch of ridiculous comments. You all act like the paper is folding, and some of you are happy about it. Why celebrate anything that results in a loss of jobs? That's so mean spirited and wrong. Would you be just as happy if the Trib started laying people off? Well, they're doing something to face the same revenue issues that the News is facing, we're just not hearing about because they won't man up and go public like the News is.

To John @6:43 | 9:32 p.m. July 8, 2008

John, it's "ads", not "adds." Pay attention to that spell checker, dude.

Advertising revenue | 9:39 p.m. July 8, 2008

Advertising revenue is down becaue the people advertising in the paper are not getting any traffic from the ads. The ads are designed as they were 50 years ago, and no one needs to read the ads to know that K-Mart, J.C. Penney, Shopko, Wal-Mart, haven't put anything new in their ads for years. The fault goes way beyond the paper. The paper is a victim. The ads are a total waste today. The stores always are running the same sales. One doesn't need to read the ads to know what one should go to Shopko to shop for, or to K-Mart, or to Wal-Mart. I do want to complement the food stores like Macey's. We always pull the Macey's ad to go through because there really are new bargains each week. All the rest of those color ad sections go directly from the paper into the recycle box without ever being opened. Another exception might be certain Office Supply stores. I'll usually scan those. Most stores haven't rethought marketing for 50 years. They are not reinventing themselves to meet our needs, particularly needs for low-cost, modest clothing. Their buyers are not in touch with Utah customers.

RE: Matt @ 8:58 | 9:39 p.m. July 8, 2008

You're proof positive of the First Amendment at work, man, though not necessarily for the better.

Congrats. You got the attention you were craving! But after I tell ya it's pretty low-class to rejoice when anybody anywhere loses a job, especially through no fault of their own, that's all the attention I'm going to give ya.

Next.

Internal Fight | 9:45 p.m. July 8, 2008

I find it interesting that no one has brought up the fact that the Church itself is helping to kill the papers add revenue. One of the most popular places to place local classifieds is KSL.com why? They have a huge reach and they are free. Why the Church would allow one of its own businesses to directly sabotage anotherï¿½s business model is beyond me. I use both KSL.com and Craigï¿½s list. Locally I get by far the best results from KSL.com a church owned free classified business. Wow, is anyone thinking in the ivory tower downtown?

From: Internal Fight | 9:56 p.m. July 8, 2008

Sorry about the misspelling I know its Ad not Add.

Gretzky | 10:10 p.m. July 8, 2008

Yahoo and such are taking over the information world. mormontimes.com is doing quite well. the church news will forever do well. i wish i could subscribe to the church news without having to get the paper the rest of the week or any other day or even the rest of the paper. the online version of the paper is awesome.

Johny Fairplay | 10:13 p.m. July 8, 2008

"Why the Church would allow one of its own businesses to directly sabotage anotherï¿½s business model is beyond me".

Another transfer of asset ownership within the corporation for avoidance of tax liabilities maybe?

KH | 10:40 p.m. July 8, 2008

When the Salt Lake Tribune reported on the pending DN layoffs some weeks ago, they reported that their own decline in readership is worse than that of the DN. The struggles of the DN have nothing to do with the management of Joe Cannon--in fact, he is reacting to worldwide trends, not causing them.

People have also misunderstood his comment about the D-News becoming "more Mormon". THe point is that in addition to its local content, the DN is going to supply news about the Mormon Church online to readers Worldwide.

The D-News has to cut costs and find its niche, and I think they are doing the right things. I just hope that they and other venerable papers succeed, because I prefer edited "print" news to TV and internet blurbs.

KH | 10:43 p.m. July 8, 2008

I might add...the DN does need to update stories quickly like the Trib, but if they can do it without the typos the Trib has I will be pleased...

Sam | 11:07 p.m. July 8, 2008

I hope the people they canned were the ones who write the sappy, monocular copy, who rush their fresh copy from their Underwood typewriter to the editor wearing his green visor, who then would go over it with a red pencil.

Adapt or perish.

Ronald A. Young | 11:12 p.m. July 8, 2008

You have do what you have to do. Ads pay for Newspapers, No Ads No News Papers. My local paper just piles up in the driveway then goes in the Garbage. I may read the Monday Paper, Golf Prize Money, and keep track of the Juniors. I used to be a big Letters to the Ed fan, 27 Letters in 7 Years. However only one this year. I just Post it on Honolulu Topix. If I want to read anything they have to say I read it online. They Support Obama and I do not Support People that Support Obama, because Obama is Pro Choice. Other reasons also but thatï¿½s enough. Online News is becoming the future thing. Saves a Lot of Trees. Some how the Free Bees keep putting out their Junk. But I don't read it anyway. I do not think I have ever read a Print Copy of Desert News, I buy the Church News every year would not be with out it. I read the Back Page first right there in the Post Office. This is why you do not become a slave to your job. Family Time First and Foremost.

Eskie | 11:36 p.m. July 8, 2008

I suspect subscriptions are down. I do not care for the preachy editorializing under Joe Cannon's leadership. The editorials have become a pro-illegal immigration Sunday school lesson. I hope Joe Cannon gets the message that voters gave his brother: "We the people" are rightly indignant at the flaunting of our laws and resent being told that we need to welcome illegals with open arms. The Deseret News is as out of touch with its readers as Chris Cannon was with the voters who shooed him out of office. I am cancelling my subscription.

E.Ward | 11:45 p.m. July 8, 2008

I have had the Deseret News in my home since I was a little girl in So. Idaho, probably in the early 1940s. I have complete confidence in the reporting found on its pages, and now also on the internet. It always amazes me when friends say they do not take the Deseret News. Having been around it so long, it almost seems un-loyal to not subscribe to it!
Editor Cannon, I wish you success as you help the Deseret News make a transition in this changing world.

I echo a previous writer, since I, too, look forward to more all-Utah news. Carry On. . . .

To Me | 4:13 a.m. July 9, 2008

I think more people like liars
Telling the truth gets you no where.
I ordered the paper and asked it be on the porch by 6 AM, That was the deal
I have a circular Drive
The paper was always at the street and pileing up
Go figure.
I do not take the paper any more
Besides it is a waste of Tree's

arc | 7:34 a.m. July 9, 2008

Unfortunately, Charles W. Penrose isn't around to make this thing work. If Joe Cannon were so smart, he would figure out how to pull in the demand for the Church News Section.

It is still available only in print, unless you pay for the print copy already. If in Utah, to get it in print, you have to have a subscription to take the paper.

I, for one, would pay $10 a year, perhaps $20 to have access to the Church News online. I am not going to purchase the paper in print form. I realize, that there are a number of people that only take the paper to get this section. It is almost like blackmail.

It is time that someone figured how to solve this.

Dave | 8:47 a.m. July 9, 2008

We already have a strong newspaper in town (the Twib). The Snooze has tried for several years to be like their big brother, making two twibs. So if the Snooze goes away, so be it. The only reason the Snooze even exists is due to subscribing Mormons who believe supporting the Snooze somehow supports the Church.

Truth be known, with the exception of its sports writers, the Snooze is a cheesy newspaper.

And don't get me started on The Church News. Boy, there's quality writing. What a joke. The Ensign it is not. Not even close.

My2Cents | 8:51 a.m. July 9, 2008

The LDS Church already has it's own "newspaper". It is called the Ensign. It's time for the D-News to hang up its hat.

gratedane | 9:01 a.m. July 9, 2008

Deseret News needs to learn the law of supply and demand. They supply warmed-over AP wire stories that are everywhere else, and no wonder they take a nose-dive. If they were to offer interesting, comprehensive local coverage along with good coverage of Utah impacts from national Congressional delegation, then maybe it would be worth picking-up to read. Instead, it's now mostly ads, and drivel. Where are the feature stories, the historical series, the retrospectives, etc.? There's plenty to write about that woudl be interesting, and instead, the profit-motive drives short-term decisions that doom it to ultimate destruction. RIP!

I Love the DNews | 9:33 a.m. July 9, 2008

I have always preferred the Deseret News to the Tribune and hope truly hope these changes allow you to stay strong and competitive. I must admit that I prefer the online content to the hard copy paper these days and hope you will move to an online format that will also bring you revenue.

Franz | 10:25 a.m. July 9, 2008

To My2Cents: You paid too much. There is a big difference between a monthly magazine and a weekly newspaper. Both are important, but have separate purposes.

el duderino | 10:33 a.m. July 9, 2008

Revenues declining, yet the DN will continue to give us the same newspaper? Revenues are declining because the DN is a shabby paper. The only way to increase revenue is to change the current product.

I want to subscribe to the DN, but despite the desire, I find it impossible to do so. It is uninteresting and too often poorly written. It spouts the same blather you can see on any generic news station on TV. It simply cuts and pastes "news" articles from the national wires, without editing the obligatory leftist bias in those "news" articles. It hypes stories where the hype is not warranted, and it ignores stories that should be covered. Most glaringly, it does not have an interesting editorial viewpoint. I think it is viewed by many as having a conservative editorial viewpoint, but its editorials would certainly show otherwise. It may not be leftist, but it surely is not conservative. Its editorial page is better described as generic, soft-brained, wanna-be high-brow, enlightened moderate, conventional wisdom mush.

Until the DN addresses its vapidity, I expect its numbers will continue to decline.

In the past two years | 11:41 a.m. July 9, 2008

I have emailed the reporters on issues of education and illegal immigration. They emailed back stating the "policy" of the paper is to add more funding to education and also support illegal immigrants. I could care less about the paper's point of view. I just want the news. If an illegal committed a crime the paper should report it as such. I think their head strong attitude cost the paper money. And if people are fired then good.

perhaps | 12:54 p.m. July 9, 2008

the DN needs an Editor-in-Chief who has experience in the newspaper business.

Joe "Censorship" Cannon | 12:55 p.m. July 9, 2008

Deseret News really needs a newspaper man running the show, not a politician. Joe knows nothing about running a newspaper, and the DNEWS struggling to be profitable is the end result.

Matt | 5:27 p.m. July 9, 2008

Sadly there IS a recession. It is hitting newspapers/magazines everywhere very hard. I am a news editor in the UK.

Over here in the UK, our own advertisers are pulling out or cutting back as they have no money.

So far we have coped but it is getting problematic.

It's the Economy | 6:41 p.m. July 9, 2008

If we don't see a change towards the better in the
gas price situation and all that it affects, this will be only the tip of the iceberg. Advertizing is one of the First things a business will trim when
revenue declines. Paying the rent, the power bill and other fixed things have far greater priority.
after advertizing drops off, then people start losing their jobs, the recession turns into
DEPREESION. If this doesn't turn around soon,
George W. Bush will do down in the history books
like the late President Herbert Hoover did.

Remember the buck stops at the White House in the minds of many.

Deadline Dan | 9:49 p.m. July 9, 2008

Even with the layoff of 34 staffers the Deseret News newsroom is still fat. There is a rule of thumb in the news business of 1 journalist for every 1,000 subscribers. That means the Deseret News should have about 75 staffers instead of 166 or so.
The Tampa Tribune, which also recently underwent staffing cuts, has 200 journalists to serve 220,000 subscribers. While it's unfortunate that D-News staffers have been let go, the paper's newsroom has been bloated far too long compared to other papers of similar size and journalistic quality.

The Standard Examiner | 10:58 p.m. July 9, 2008

I wonder of the D-News can get some real "Newspaper" leadership from that Paper? Joe Cannon has shown that he pushes an agenda, and that he doesn't understand business princples and management.

loyal reader | 8:46 a.m. July 10, 2008

I think it's tragic that so many people have lost their jobs and that the DN is scaling back its coverage in so many areas. Without a bureau in Washington, we'll be subjected to the same sterilized news from the AP that we can get anywhere -- not stories from reporters that know what we care about and know how to focus on our issues. I don't see how the paper thinks it can stay afloat by cutting the things that make it a better product and that separate it from the rest. If I want generic AP news, I can go online for that.

Web Reader | 11:54 a.m. July 10, 2008

I never read or purchased the DN even on the web. However once the blog was started, I read daily online. The paper is too conservative for me but I find the blog debates fascinating esp concerning religion. I've learned a lot about LDS faith by reading the blogs both pos and neg. Business must continually adapt to the times and the internet is now a main source for news. I've never subscribed to a paper due to no time, cost, and waste of natural resources. However, there are so many news sources that I would never pay to read a subscription website either. So it seems the DN has ways to capitalize on internet ads and such to compensate for changing times. Best wishes

Mouring News Up in the Night | 1:07 a.m. July 12, 2008

Readership is in decline because the D-News is always two steps behind their ugly left-leaning brother the SL Trib. I expect garbage and business bashing from Tribune reporters, but not the Deseret News.

In the past 10 years the editorial and political sections have come to reflect the viewpoints of closet socialists.

Ask yourself, if the "right-wing" Cannon was really in charge of the once great D-News, why is it spewing forth liberal garbage? The truth of the matter is that "progressive" editors are really running the paper and calling the shots. Cannon is becoming the paperï¿½s scapegoat.

If the Des News were to give conservatives within the state a clear voice I would renew my subscription that I let lapse three years ago. I don't suspect I'll be writing a check to the Deseret News for a long time.

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