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I can barely imagine what the cultural life and political life of this country would become without the New York Times. But it’s an idea that Michael Hirschorn, writing in the Atlantic, says we’d better get used to. He says the New York Times Company is looking at over $1 billion in debt and a mere $46 million or so in cash reserves, and the flagship paper is saddled with the sinking readership and advertising endemic to the industry. Hirschorn can imagine the print edition of the Times disappearing as early as May.
“In this scenario, nytimes.com would begin to resemble a bigger, better, and less partisan version of the Huffington Post, which, until someone smarter or more deep-pocketed comes along, is the prototype for the future of journalism: a healthy dose of aggregation, a wide range of contributors, and a growing offering of original reporting.”
