links for 2009-03-24

The Teesdale Mercury has been publishing near my old home in the Dales since 1854 and will probably still be publishing in 2054 thanks to its hyperlocal nature, acceptance of digital technologies and independent ownership. This 100 year archive made possible thanks to a lottery grant is an example of why that deserves to be the case.

Some sense from Steve Yelvington on the subject of pay to view websites which signs off with: “Your online staff hates the idea and they’ll do everything they can to undermine it. Yeah, you can fire them. Why don’t you get a table saw and cut off the fingers of your right hand while you’re doing it? I’ve seen this happen time after time as newspapers consolidate print and online staffs, and the “formerly known as print” people conspire to expel the “formerly known as online” people. The result is a great leap backward. It’s self-destructive.”