Jim Chisholm at Newspapers & Technology writes about the decline of newspaper circulation in recent times, and how this will affect publications in the future. Chisholm cites a drop of 1 to 3 percent per year for newspapers, but points out that television news programs have dropped by half - though he doesn't clarify over what time period.

Further on, the idea of print news moving to a different business model - let's call it the "short and sweet" model - comes along. The gist of it is that papers might move a lot more of their coverage into this "short and sweet" publication, one that is handed out on streetcorners in business centers or on public transportation, etc. Just as subscription and newsstand sales don't make up the revenues needed to put the publication together in the current media economy, removing them completely from the process won't be as brutal as it sounds because the printing cost will dramatically change. Advertisements will still make up for the cash flow needs of the publishers. Will this ultimately replace all daily newspapers? Probably not. But is it a way to stay relevant to dedicated readers? Probably.

But let's get down to brass tacks. This article is missing something - something big. Changing distribution methods isn't the savior for declining readership of print materials. Newspaper readership will continue to slow. Along the same lines, television, while it continues to grow in technological ability, still loses viewership in certain avenues to one thing - the Internet. I think that while this article makes some super-valid points, not mentioning the Internet as THE distribution method of choice for most people who consider themselves "well informed" is short-sighted. The "short and sweet" newspaper will help offer people a way to read the news in the manner they're most used to while checking it online - quickly - but with the prevalence of WiFi, PDAs, and data-enabled mobile phones, it is very possible that generations of people (not just Americans) will get most of their news without ever getting newsprint on their fingertips.