Princeton University

PRIOR, the Woodrow Wilson School’s Policy Institute for the Region, has released its latest publication titled “The Newspaper Crisis,” drawn from a conference held at the Woodrow Wilson School on Friday, May 1, 2009.

Panelists from both traditional print media and web-based alternative news sources met to discuss newspaper closures, lay-offs, decreased circulation, alternative forms of journalism and future funding, and other important issues currently facing the newspaper industry.
In the first panel experts discussed the decline of the local newspaper industry, particularly the decreased coverage of the NJ Statehouse. They discussed the dimensions of the crisis in the region, the changes in local journalism, and how those changes impact urban policy.
Panelists on the second panel discussed the emerging on-line news services, alternative funding for newspapers through non-profits or philanthropy, and the changing face of news in light of the diminished number of traditional newspapers and the increased use of the Internet as a source of information.

Paul E. Starr, Stuart Professor of Communications and Public Affairs in the Woodrow Wilson School, Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs, delivered the opening address.

For more information or a printed copy of the Summary, please contact Georgette Harrison at gharriso@princeton.edu.