I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
The Albuquerque Journal isn’t the only newspaper selling commemorative issues of the front page from Nov. 5 — the day after the history-making election of Barack Obama as president. As one person said, “You can’t keep a Web page in a scrapbook.”
Well, if you hit your print button, you can, but we won’t argue. It’s nice to have historic newspapers tucked away for the future. I’m old school that way.
And while I understand the commemorative election issue being sold, I wasn’t alone in finding it extremely odd that the Journal also is actively selling advertising for a special section on retiring U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici. The Journal is running ads inviting people to buy advertising for an upcoming special section on Domenici.
“Seriously, making money off the senator’s retirement?” one of my colleagues asked. Is it innovative sales technique or opportunistic and callous? Guess that’s a matter of opinion.
If the Journal is in self-preservation mode — declining circulation, advertising revenues dropping off — I guess the potential for making money on both the Obama and Domenici ventures makes sense to those in command. But what about the public? Guess we’ll see if there’s reaction.
The Journal reprinted the front page on A6 of this Sunday’s newspaper. But it also will sell you a souvenir front page — 8 x 10′s are $10.68 if you pick up the page at Journal Center and $14.68 if you want it mailed. You can also pick up an 11 x 17 page for $26.69.
The Journal didn’t bump its production order, according to one manager. Perhaps they could have sold more had they printed more. For example, The Los Angeles Times ran 40,000 extra copies, sold them all and began printing a second run of 30,000. The New York Times printed 50,000 extra copies; The Chicago Tribune, an extra 200,000. In Atlanta, the newspapers set up tables on the street to sell three extra printings: 40,000, then 60,000 and then a last run of 50,000.
Papers also sold out in Indianapolis, Charlotte, Detroit, Chicago and Miami, among other cities. Some newspapers, like the Journal, sold extra editions on the streets or special commemorative copies online. Others began offering front pages laminated or mounted on marble or wood.
