Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Greed and final P-I

There is a special place in hell for people who raided P-I boxes this morning. Furthermore, I suggest you say 10 hail Marys if you bought a paper for .75 cents and are now selling your copy for $50 or more. God, goddess or gods -- you fill in the blank -- is frowning upon you! As much as I want a copy of the final edition of the P-I and feel my life is incomplete without one, I will NEVER pay more than $5 for it. A profit is one thing, but greed is another.

UPDATE (3/18/09, 7:51 AM): A former P-I staffer and fan of this blog offered to meet me for coffee and give me a copy of the final P-I. Sorry for sounding like a bitter blogger!

Death of a newspaper

The final print edition of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer is out on the streets -- if you can find one that is.

I spent the morning visiting one empty PI box after another and every store along my route from home to work was sold-out as well.

The good news... I hear there will be a second distribution this afternoon. In the worst case scenerio, I have a few contacts on the black market who may be able to help.

Josh Trujillio, a P-I photographer, noted that the final edition includes some humor from the obituary section. Among the obits you will find the P-I itself.

POST-INTELLIGENCER: Seattle, 146, of Seattle, March 17.

Monday, March 16, 2009

Globe stays put says PI

The Associated Press reports that the landmark Seattle Post-Intelligencer globe atop the newspaper's headquarters on Elliot Ave will go nowhere -- at least for a couple more years.

P-I managing editor David McCumber said that the web-only version will be housed in the same building that once was buzzing with as many as 170 employees. Although the web staff will number no more than 50, the P-I has a couple years left on its lease.

Therefore, the globe will continue spinning overhead as the P-I seeks to redefine itself online. If successful, the globe could come to represent not only Seattle but a new model for the struggling newspaper industry.

Should I continue my petition to save the globe? Sound off in the comments of this post or cast your vote on the sidebar of this blog.