I hope not.But read Eric Altermanthe New Yorker on the immense financial struggles faced by newspaper owners as young people read less, classified sections collapse in face of the onslaught by Craig's List and advertisers migrate to the web. Commentary, of course, will remain, on this blog and thousands of competitors. But who will doserious investigative reporting? And will communities based on print -- the voters in a mid-size city, for example -- be able to replicate themselves once one of the key markers of civic identity fades away?A side question: I'm assuming the future of small magazines like Commonweal is much more promising. Is it?

John T. McGreevy is the Charles and Jill Fischer Provost at the University of Notre Dame.

Also by this author

Most Recent

© 2024 Commonweal Magazine. All rights reserved. Design by Point Five. Site by Deck Fifty.