Just today the New York Times reported their second quarter data. Second quarter of 2013 was $70.7 million in adjusted profit, and today's report shows $55.7 million for 2014 second quarter. It's a 21% slip for the corporation. If I'm ever to get more into stocks, I first have to get over the "OMG, 21%" shock wave when I hear something like this. I have good reason for that reaction, though... I ended up getting scared years ago when there was a big price drop in gold. It was about 12 years ago and our biggest investment had been physical gold. Market took a tank and Kate freaked out... sold all we had at under $400/oz and although it wasn't a hit from what we originally paid, to see what it's at now makes me . Then when it was decided to start building gold again, we put a rather large order in.... with Allen Sanford's company. Oy! The definition of out of the frying pan and into the fire! Took a LONG time for buyers to receive what was ordered, but finally did. Anyhow, that's why seeing something like a 21% drop scares me... I know my nervousness and background and would most likely be making tons of mistakes. Is this kind of loss normal?
21% in any industry shows that the industry itself is having some tough times as well...which for newspapers is definitely true. A lot of even the biggest newspapers are trying to figure out how to monetize their offerings. Magazines are coming to the same fate. The only previously printed media that is having any success (which could shift on a dime) is books. I would expect that most newspaper companies are having similar issues, though none quite as readily as this "liberal rag".
The newspaper industry as a whole has been suffering for years now. Online subscriptions and digital content have helped some newspapers retain some revenue but not too effectively, as far as I know. I almost invested in NYT in 2009 because I thought they might beat the industry trend of tanking, but the stock is at an identical level price-wise as it was back then. Newspapers aren't completely dead yet, but they're becoming more and more irrelevant. In fact, I think couponers are the ones propping newspaper sales up, at least on Sundays!
'Tis indeed, JR, 'tis indeed. Which is why I don't read it and don't plan to buy 51% of the shares. (Although... nah!) But I got this as a breaking news story and it sounded rather drastic... the 21%, so I wanted to see if that was very unusual or if my alarm bells were malfunctioning. I know the other posters are right about this being a trend in newspapers... and magazines as well. I've seen first-hand up close and personal.
It may be drastic, but it is definitely how the industry is going as a whole. If we look at a newspaper as the paper its printed on, then ultimately the newspaper industry is at its last breath, however, newspapers are the same thing as CNN...they are news outlets. Once they discover this is their model and run with it, they will likely have a little more success... If they become like the Youtube news channels, who knows what will happen.
Sad to say but I think the days of paying for news are over. The majority of people I know who get the paper get it for the coupons! The New York Times has my top respect for its history and talent, but I just don't think their business is working in the digital age. I wouldn't put much faith into the printed book industry either, as nice as they are I think people will get more and more choosy about the physical media they buy. That goes for movies and tv as well!
