San Francisco Chronicle Finances Spark Rumors

Tim O'Reilly is hearing rumors that the San Francisco Chronicle is in trouble:

I hate to play Valleywag, but I'm hearing rumors that the San Francisco Chronicle is in big trouble. Apparently, Phil Bronstein, the editor-in-chief, told staff in a recent "emergency meeting" that the news business "is broken, and no one knows how to fix it." ("And if any other paper says they do, they're lying.") Reportedly, the paper plans to announce more layoffs before the year is out.

The New York Times reports today that February's advertising revenue for newspapers across the county were sharply lower than they were a year ago. The report blames the decline in revenue on the loss of classified ads to free sites like Craig's List, and, in areas of California and Florida, a the decline in the housing market. (hat tip to Atrios.)

Blog triumphalists may dance at the downfall of the MSM; but the truth is that, pace Josh Marshall, most news blogging is the gathering and aggregating of already-reported news, not original reporting. The chief foundation of news reporting is advertising sales to newspapers, and if that revenue is drying up, then our overall ability to know what is going on in the world is deeply compromised.