Stop The Presses

We've all heard the phrase "stop the presses," and yes, it really is used in the newspaper industry. I learned this fact along with so much more, on a tour of the UT in San Diego, arranged by Barbara and Pam. They are in charge of our Wanderers group, and each month, they arrange an interesting outing for the Newcomers of San Dieguito. This month it was lunch at True Food in Fashion Valley followed by a very interesting 80 minute tour of the UT.

I've reviewed True Food in the past. I love it, as it represents everything I look for in a restaurant: interesting menu, healthy choices, good ambience, and locally sourced produce. Much of the success of the restaurant is due to the name Dr. Andrew Weil being associated with the chain. He is the Harvard professor who's main focus is health and wellness, so a healthy restaurant was a natural for him. The restaurant has several restaurants in Southern California: Santa Monica, Newport Beach, San Diego. I've been to them all. The prices are very moderate and portions are plentiful. I had the Harvest Salad last time I was there, and it was delicious. Butternut squash, walnuts, pomegranates and goat cheese were just some of the many ingredients. Other choices were pizzas, bison burger, carmelized onion tart, edemanane pot stickers, pastas, sandwiches, and soups. There was really something for everyone, regardless of their food preferences.

The UT is currently owned by Doug Manchester and John Lynch, although Doug is not involved in day to day operations. John Lynch runs the paper. It has been in operation since 1868, without interruption. Their first building was in Old Town, and if you visit Old Town, you will see the old newspaper office. Print media has declined rapidly over the past two decades due to digital media, and many think the demise of the newspaper is coming soon. We have already seen many newspapers and magazines cease operation. The challenge for the UT is to stay relevant in this age when their readership consists mainly of people aged 40-70. They have to appeal to young people too. The UT has developed an online digital paper that one can subscribe to, a radio station with interesting programming, and a local TV station, which broadcasts several times a day. We were there at 1:30pm and they were broadcasting live. The UT does have a circulation on Sunday of about 350,000 copies, so people still do read the newspaper.

Advertising, which produces much of the revenue that keeps a newspaper in business, is way down. This is because many of the retail stores that used to have inserts in the Sunday paper and advertise almost day with full page ads, have gone to the internet. I remember the days when Bullocks would have a full page ad in the LA Times at least once a week. Those days are gone.

The UT focuses on local news. They figure that the AP already does a great job of giving us international news, so they pick up the AP stories for most of the international stories. They focus on local news and sports because they say that's what people want. We saw the printing presses, and although technology has increased the speed and ease of working the presses, they are still huge, spewing ink everywhere during operation.

One final thing. The phrase "stop the presses" really is used. Even after checking and double checking the final paper before it goes to print, sometimes things are discovered when printing has already begun. For example, the misspelling of a head of state would stop the presses and the spelling would be corrected. An insult to an important head of state would also stop the presses, and be corrected. A big event which happens after the paper goes to print, like an earthquake, would also stop the presses. Our guide feels that the newspaper as we know it, has another 12-15 years before it becomes extinct. I no longer read the paper daily. I read papers on line, as most young people do. Soon there will be a generation that has never read a paper. Sadly, technology has hurt the print industry. We'll have to wait and see what eventually happens.