Black and White and Red All Over

Remember the joke, “What is black and white and red all over?” As a young child I would eagerly anticipate telling it to someone who didn’t know that “red” was spelled “read” and thus wouldn’t blurt out the correct answer of “the newspaper of course!” Although being “read all over” could be a misnomer.

It seems as though print media is in somewhat of an identity crisis. More and more of us are reading our news online or watching the 24-hour television news stations. Our local newspaper only publishes a print version of the paper six days a week. The Oregonian, the Portland, Oregon newspaper has severely reduced the print version and is bolstering the online presence.

I am “old-school.” For me, it started when our grade school class took a tour of the local printing company. I felt a special connection because my great uncle worked there and led our tour. We saw the printing presses and he told us stories about the first printing press and Benjamin Franklin’s first newspaper. It makes me sad to think about losing this piece of my history.

I want to grow old walking to the end of driveway to pick up the surprise in the orange plastic wrapper that comes in the form of a newspaper. As I open the plastic I take in the smell of the ink and newsprint. I scan the headlines describing the overnight happenings. Next I go to the letters to the editor and look at the names at the bottom to see if I know the person who is spouting off really crazy ideas. And I top off my morning read with the lagniappe of Dilbert and my other favorite comics.

We also receive the Wall Street Journal by mail each day, and I let the articles of the rich and famous on the other side of the country lull me to sleep at night. I am fascinated by the $500 million mansions for sale and the retreat center that is located in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. I devour the self-help articles about being environmentally responsible, upping your business game and the muses on the state of the economy. They make me a more well rounded person. Yes, I do sometimes read the newspapers online, but it just isn’t the same. Mostly, I find articles in the print version that I want to save on my computer and search for them so that I can delve more in-depth interesting topics. Sometimes I forward the articles to friends and business associates and possibly even tweet it.

Is the newspaper really read all over the world and if so is it declining? Maybe part of the reason is that we do not have newspapers in our schools for kids to begin to appreciate instead of being addicted to their phones, tablets and phablets.

I had the opportunity today to get newspapers in kids’ hands so it won’t be another dying art form. When we leave town we usually tell the newspaper just to hold our papers or not deliver them. This time the newspaper asked if I would like to donate them to schools for teachers to use with their classes. I readily agreed that this is a way to be sure the newspaper gets “read all over.”

In Giving,

Robin