Years ago, when I was arguing for legalization of illicit drugs, my elders told me I'd feel differently once I had kids. I had three, and I didn't feel differently about the wisdom of prohibition. For years, whenever I've defended the free market against those objecting to its ruthless elimination of uncompetitive firms, angry readers have told me I'd feel differently if it were my company and my job that were at risk. As of today, my company and my job are now officially at risk. But no, I don't feel any differently.
Business has been brutally hard for newspapers lately. The rise of the Internet has deprived us of readers and revenues, and now a recession is pulling us down as well. So Tribune Co., saddled with a heavy debt load, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to gain some breathing space.
Seeing your employer and "bankruptcy" in the same headline does get your attention.
But I'm no more worried today than I was before this development. Tribune Co. and the Chicago Tribune are profitable enterprises with lots of valuable assets. Chapter 11 isn't my idea of a good time, but it's not as dire as it sounds, and it won't stop us from putting out the paper every day.
I'm glad to see that no one in this industry has had the gall to ask Washington for a bailout. True, journalism provides a valuable service to the public. But if the public isn't willing to pay for that service, we have no grounds to demand a rescue. It's our job as journalists to provide something people want in a form that they want and are willing to pay for. If we can't, we deserve our fate. But I hold out hope that we can.
Steve Chapman blogs daily at newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/steve_chapman. To find out more about Steve Chapman, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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