Broadsheet versus Tabloid

[LanceyHoward]

I read on the Gannett blog that that company is moving or planning to move three of their papers to tabloid.

But when Scripps closed the Rocky they made a point of saying that a tabloid was a less viable business model because the broadsheet could charge more for full page retail ads. A broadsheet has more inches on a page and can generate more revenue. Are those economics no longer true because of the continuing decline in retail advertising? Or was Scripps just lying three years ago?

 

[LongTimeListener]

Deck chairs, Titanic, etc.

 

[Spartan Squad]

Those economics are still true, but it is kind of to the point that people are taking a harder look at expenses rather than ways to generate revenue. It is true that more inches means more ad potential but that paper starts to cost a good deal of scratch after a while. Our shop trimmed the size of our paper a while ago just so the cost of paper wasn't as high. We ultimately shut down our printer and shipped that out. It is kind of a shame because you figure working to rejuvenate ad revenue would be the priority rather than digging your self a hole expecting to get out of the other hole you dug for yourself already.

The one bright side to going to a tab (depending on what kind of printers Gannett is using) you can actually get more color on a tab in some cases. There are those printers that can do 100 percent color, but your color slots are more with a tab on printers that have limited color positions. This can actually lead to more potential revenue because you can charge more people for color. Now is that enough to justify the loss in revenue for selling a broadsheet full page or the numbers of inches you can charge otherwise? I really don't know, but someone pinching pennies has that worked out.

 

[MileHigh]

I read on the Gannett blog that that company is moving or planning to move three of their papers to tabloid.

But when Scripps closed the Rocky they made a point of saying that a tabloid was a less viable business model because the broadsheet could charge more for full pages retail ads. A broadsheet has more inches on a page and can generate more revenue. Are those economics no longer true because of the continuing decline in retail advertising? Or was Scripps just lying three years ago?

Scripps did a lot of lying in late 2008 and early 2009.

I grew to enjoy working at a tab. A lot of readers preferred it because of ease of reading it. And you can be a lot more creative with design and takeouts in a tab format. But certainly, the ad dynamics are still in play.

 

[Mike Nadel]

My kids and their friends probably would ask three questions:

What's a broadsheet?

What's a tabloid?

What's a newspaper?

 

[slappy4428]

My kids and their friends probably would ask three questions:

What's a broadsheet?

What's a tabloid?

What's a newspaper?

When did dad have hair?

Is Sid really a close personal friend?

Is Sid really covered with pigeon shirt?

 

[sportsnut]

Tabs still have the reputation of not being a real newspaper and is the size used for entertainment supermarket magazines. Broadsheets are the high and mighty newspaper with 100 percent facts and news you can trust.

I have read tabloids all over from the Daily News in NY, Boston Herald as well as European newspaper. I love tabloid size newspapers because they are easy to read. It's great for commuters from airports to trains as well as bus and subway.

I am actually surprised that they have not changed the USA Today newspaper to tabloid since a lot of its readership is people in Hotel/airplanes where reading a broadsheet sucks.

 

[geddymurphy]

Tabs still have the reputation of not being a real newspaper and is the size used for entertainment supermarket magazines. Broadsheets are the high and mighty newspaper with 100 percent facts and news you can trust.

I have read tabloids all over from the Daily News in NY, Boston Herald as well as European newspaper. I love tabloid size newspapers because they are easy to read. It's great for commuters from airports to trains as well as bus and subway.

I am actually surprised that they have not changed the USA Today newspaper to tabloid since a lot of its readership is people in Hotel/airplanes where reading a broadsheet sucks.

Exactly.

The "Berliner" size, somewhere in between tab and broadsheet, wouldn't be a bad idea.

What's especially silly about USA TODAY is that they try to save newsprint by running skinnier pages. That makes the paper even clumsier to hold and read. And many of their presses actually can't handle the skinnier paper, so you end up with wide white margins on every page.