Father-in-law went out and got a newspaper. A real, printed, newspaper.

I’ve worked for over 20 years in newspapers, and today it felt strange holding one in my hand for the first time. Got so used to the web/app versions during the pandemic, not sure I could go back to paper.

@maique I miss them living in a place where I can’t get hold of them. Digital isn’t the same. Though obviously I probably just grumble about the price.

@Omrrc I get it. Would probably complain if I couldn’t get them whenever I wanted too... During these months the kiosks were shut down and were home all the time anyway, so the bigger papers here removed the paywall, and we had access to everything online. A lot of people got used to that, I guess. Me included.

@maique My favorite feature of printed newspapers is that there's an end to the news. I can read the news and move on. Also no video. Oh, and no comment sections :).

@jack Also, they had to develop, write, edit, and finalize the story before print. No half-assed “breaking news with what we know now but will be proven wrong later” @maique

@jack Good point. Particularly the part about the comments, I hated those with a passion.

@pratik Sometimes it’s not a straightforward. Some/most of them are made for the online edition, and then make it to the printed edition. They can be edited throughout the day, obviously, but some falls through the cracks. Downside: they’re really yesterday’s news when the edition hits the street the next morning. Some things might have changed in the meantime, and you can’t update the paper.

@maique Agree about pros and cons. But given the nature of today’s news, I prefer to read “yesterday’s news” now. Maybe soon I’ll be ready for today.

@maique I have always loved physical newspapers. One of the simple pleasures in life for me is a quiet spot, a good cup of coffee and a newspaper on my lap. One advantage of reading the words printed on paper is that the headline is usually written to inform while the online version is written to maximise controversy and hence feed the ad tech machine.

Even so, I’m down to buying one only at the weekend as the quality of journalism has declined. They no longer have the resources they need to invest in good journalism as ad revenues flow almost exclusively to Google and Facebook.

@wfm I'm totally a printed newspaper person, and I was lucky to work in one where the headlines match, regardless of where they end up. Obviously some situations evolve, and pieces are re-written but, other than that, they're the same. That's one of the reasons why I stayed for 20 years. I agree with the resources bit, it's not what it used to be, and that was also a reason why I left my dream job after all that time.

I'm well aware there are no two identical newsrooms, and a lot do work with clickbait, but I was privileged to work in one that didn't. The size of the newsroom shrank through the years, down to half of its size when I got there. This I believe is a common occurrence, regardless of country or orientation of the papers.

I fully agree with the coffee and quiet corner part, I'm guilty of that as well, usually with a cigarette in hand (I know, I know). I've bought a few newspapers in languages I don't even speak, solely for the pleasure of seeing how they looked and felt in those countries.. it was, and still is, a pleasure.

@maique I should have said is sometimes written and not is written. I also look at newspapers in other languages. You always learn something about the area or the culture even if you can’t read the language.

My interest in newspapers began thanks to a teacher I had in school a long time ago. From time to time, he would bring in a newspaper, pick an article and read it aloud and then would discuss it with the class. It opened my eyes a little to the world.

@maique @pratik @jack These are all amongst the reasons my only consistent news subscription is for The Economist, when I can afford it; weekly news has hardly any of the motivating factors to produce crap. They even make unsubscribing pretty easy.

With regard to the form factor, I've yet to settle on something I enjoy for digital; I don't like using my phone and have yet to own an iPad that is up to the challenge (I've only ever used the basic 9.7" model).

@simonwoods @maique @jack I find the iPad Mini the perfect reading device for digital content (news, articles, books, etc.)

@pratik I had been thinking about! Right now the main reason I've not tried is that I'd like to avoid having too many devices to manage, even if it runs super lightweight and just needs to be charged.

@simonwoods @maique Agreed! Just reading "The world this week" in The Economist each week is probably enough to keep abreast of nearly everything important going on, without a drop of toxic sauce.

@pratik I gave away my Mini and regret it. It was far and away the best digital reading device (other than a Kindle for books, which I still prefer).

@jack Same here, regarding the mini! I had one and gave it away. Sorry as can be!

@maique There was a time when I subscribed to multiple magazines. I couldn’t wait for the next issue to arrive.

Then digital became a thing. My wife continued subscribing to Sunset magazine, which I loved.

Recently I tried to read one. It felt strange. I can’t describe it any better than that.

@fahrni I think magazines are stranger. I’m ok reading the news, newspapers, on the phone. Usually I even send to to a reading app (GoodLinks at the moment) text and photos only. But I need the design part on magazines, and that I still reading offline.

@fahrni for years I subscribed to Rolling Stone, Sports Illustrated, Sporting News, INC and Cooks Illustrated. The internet replaced them all.