newspapers, books, and paper
As some Sticks readers may know, I was one of the first volunteer Community Columnists for the Tampa Tribune (2005-2006), writing opinion editorials for a year, and in December 2007, I wrote another op-ed which was so kindly accepted.
My experience with the Editorial Staff, and responses received from readers, was nothing less than an extreme pleasure.
So, although I was not a paid employee, I am sorry to see the Tribune layoffs happen. First and foremost, sorry for the Tribune employees’ sake; but also for the fact that having the experience of touching fingers to paper, be it in newspapers, magazines or books, I fear will soon be a long-lost sensory delight and loss of choice.
When I first came to Tampa over 20 years ago, things were still as they were when I was a little girl. I went to the Tampa Public Library to search for something on paper cards in tall card files. I loved going through the cards, making the discovery of what I searched for and then being able to find the books on the aisles.
Now, we sit down at a computer, that can have all sorts of uninvited stuff on it, and we stare at a screen to find what we want. Is it my imagination that the smell of the library is even different?
As people read more and more online, instead of spending the very small price for a newspaper, we see that jobs will be cut. Eventually, will all newspaper publications close down?
With the advent of e-books and “e-zines”, what about printed books, magazines, bookstores and libraries? Will children soon not even know what they were? The feel of the pages, the smell of the print, the satisfaction of turning the last page - will it all soon be gone? Will it be replaced by even more tired, bleary eyes from endless hours staring at a screen?
I know we all got used to 8-tracks, videos, cassettes, and then CD’s instead of records, and then DVD’s, and now i-Pods and MP-3’s. And it’s great that you can listen to a whole book in your car. But I don’t want to think about the day when all printed material will be a thing of the past.
Plus, what about older people who just don’t want to buy a computer at their age? My mom and mother-in-law don’t want to start that now, at 76 and 80!
I think we are coming to depend on computers way too much, and I also think that the powers-that-be know that. I keep thinking of George Orwell’s book “1984″ and then the movie. The less we have in our hands or at least in our possession, the less we have access to without assistance from some huge monopolizing organization, the more controllable we are.
The main character in 1984, Winston Smith, had to retain a lot of information in his head. Stuff he wanted to know that was ripped from his grip. The possibility of the Tampa Tribune one day only being online, where we don’t have the choice of buying the newspaper on the street, reminds me of all the times people have tried to burn books, especially the Bible. There may come a time when this verse needs to be very true for those of us who believe:
“Your word have I hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11, NKJV).
We’d better start memorizing what we want to remember of books, because eventually, our search on the computer might be limited by the economy too, especially if we ever start being charged for the Internet by the click, as has nearly come to pass several times.
Tags: books, library, magazines, newspaper, paper
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July 8th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
The smell of the library, and books in general, definitely has changed. The old smell which is nostalgic for me too came from a combination of the paper and ink and even the musky smell of non-use.
Now, what with computer printing, it’s a different animal. So no, books don’t smell the same anymore.
I doubt they will ever completely go away though. Even as we get increasingly technologically advanced, people still want to touch, taste, and see. At least for certain kinds of products, which is why some folks research online then go out to a store.
I do think bookstores will decrease in size and will become more like the library, keeping a smaller percentage of books in stock and increasingly doing on-demand orders.
July 8th, 2008 at 9:48 pm
I find it ironic that you lament the loss of printed material in an online blog. By publishing here, it is likely far more people will read what you have to say, as well as respond to it (as I am doing).
There is no advantage whatsoever to ink and paper as a delivery medium for information or opinion, especially when the writer welcomes feedback and discussion. It might be argued that paper never malfunctions, but it was also true that the horse and buggy were pretty reliable too.
I agree with you somewhat in that online material can be controlled by “powers that be”. The internet is gradually being viewed as a threat by governments and corporations. Laws have been passed that permit literally everything on the internet to be monitored for the purpose of “national security”. This is a hallmark of fascism, and in its worst manifestation they burn books as well.
Words want to be free, and they will find a way between people. After all, words are only symbols for human communication - whether ink on a page, or pixels on a screen.
July 8th, 2008 at 10:20 pm
Thanks for your comments, Patricia and Paul. To Paul, the fact that more people will read this on the Internet isn’t ironic - it’s exactly why I put it here! The more people I can reach about resources no longer being printed, the more people will realize we are being “had”!!!
July 10th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
THE WAR HAD JUST ENDED AND MY FATHER HAD JUST BOUGHT A SCRAPYARD IN MT. VERNON,OHIO. AS SOON AS I WAS FINISHED WITH MY CHORES IN THE SCRAPYARD,IWAS ALLOWED TO GO TO THE LARGE BUILDING WHICH WAS MY SECRET HIDING PLACE,IT WAS LOADED WITH BOOKS,COMICS,NATIONAL GEOGRAPHICS,PAPERS. I CLIMBED THE MOUNTAIN EVERYDAY AND READ EVERY THING MY HANDS COULD TOUCH IWAS IN MY GLORY. WHEN I STARTED 9TH GRADE I JOINED THE LIBRARY CLUB FOR THE NEXT 4 YEARS AND RECEIVED 1 POINT FOR GRADUATION. IHAD THE LONG WHITE CARDS AS YOU DID. THEN IWENT TO OSU,WHERE I HAD TOLEARN THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS INSTEAD OF THE DEWEY DECIMAL SYSTEM. THAT IS HOW FAST THINGS CHANGE.
July 10th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
I feel really bad for people at the Times and Trib (and at papers across the nation) who are losing their jobs. Some of the nicest people I have ever known work at the Trib.
However, we are witnessing a huge change not unlike the the industrial revolution that forced people off the farms and into the factories. A way of life was destroyed, and it was hugely painful to the people who couldn’t or didn’t want to make the leap.
This revolution has been coming for a long time, and I am still amazed at how much it seems to have taken the media by surprise. Newspapers could have been at the forefront of this change. They could have led the charge. They certainly had the resources. So much of what they do could have been done even better if they had embraced the technology and looked a little bit past the ends of their noses, not just in editorial but also in advertising. Instead, they pretty much sucked their thumbs while Craig’s List demolished their classifieds and bloggers redefined journalism (especially interactive and community journalism).
Change is sad. But it’s also exciting. I doubt very much that there will come a time when there are no more print books, though I’m not so sure broadsheet newspapers will survive in their current form. A sure sign you’re succumbing to old fart-hood is when you spend more time lamenting the demise of the good ol’ days than diving into the refreshing waters of the future.
I’m not accusing you of doing that, Sheryl. Quite the opposite. I congratulate you on moving forward while still savoring, preserving and respecting the past. A way of life is dying and that is unspeakably sad. But a new way of life is being born. And it’s something most of us couldn’t even have imagined a mere 20 years ago.