The newspaper is an American institution.  The New York Times, The Washington Post,  The Virginian Pilot, The LA Times, The Chicago Sun Times and The Chicago Tribune are among my favorite newspapers.  I used to love going to the public library and reading newspapers from other cities.

In the 90's  when newspapers started going online I made it a point to visit the websites for the newspapers. Visiting the newspaper websites was a fun way to get the news.  I soon learned that the newspaper websites often were updated throughout the day and had fresh news.  Sometimes the newspapers ran stories online that did not appear in the print formats.

Many travelers and business people still depend on that hard copy paper newspaper.  I have always found newspapers bulky and not easy to read.  For the past 25 years I have wondered why they didn't make newspapers smaller and more easy to read.  You have to open up this huge print file on newspaper paper and make sure it fits on your lap or desk.  I often found myself folding newspapers in half to make them more readable.

I can't imagine a world with no newspapers.  I remember when U.S.A. Today premiered in the early 80's I was impressed with the fact that a color newspaper was readily available every day.  I still feel like it's a treat to read U.S.A. Today.

The Internet is great but it costs money.  Not every American has access to the Internet.  If newspapers went away, a lot of people who depend on that $.50 cent or $.75 news fix will be left lacking their daily news fix.

I was in complete shock when Denver's Rocky Mountain news closed.  The thing about the Rocky Mountain news that a lot of people don't realize is that the Denver Post was the more respected, more notable and had won more journalism awards than the Rocky Mountain news.  The city of Denver was always split when it came to subscribers.  Some people leaned on their Rocky Mountain News while others clung onto the Denver Post.

Newspaper lovers can rest knowing that the Denver Post is still going strong.  It's sad that the Rocky Mountain News closed its doors, but in this tough economy and in times when there isn't much hard news outside of politics and the economy, I'm sure it was hard for the Rocky Mountain News to stay afloat with the Denver Post right in the same town.

The online presence of a newspaper can set the tone for the entire paper.  Many of the newspapers require that people register for free to read the news stories.  Not all of the papers require registration.  I don't really like having to register to read news stories.  I try to read the all access stories when possible.  The online newspaper is the future.  The newspaper industry is important.  I'm sure they will hang on to their paper format as long as possible.

Seattle has always been a progressive town.  They are on the cutting edge of technology.  Silicone Valley in California stretched up the coast here and there leaving high tech people here and there along the way.  The fact that the Seattle Post -Intelligencer is switching to an online only format means that this talented staff and this forward moving city are ready to let go of the newspaper and pick up their news on the Internet.

Newspapers are fun.  If I am in a coffee shop or cafe I will take the time to browse the newspaper selection.