FAIR GAME:

If you read newspapers, you know our industry has been experiencing difficult times in recent months.

Media outlets in every major city, including Los Angeles, New York, Washington, San Francisco, Chicago, San Diego, St. Louis, Seattle and Santa Ana have reported declining newspaper revenues and, as a result, layoffs.

So it should come as no surprise to anyone that those same trying times exist at a smaller paper like the Daily Pilot.

Now, I want to be honest. We’re not going anywhere. Fact is, local community newspapers seem to be the light at the end of the tunnel for the newspaper industry.

As I like to say, at a community newspaper, we not only report the news, but also build scrapbooks.

But to make certain that we not only stay in the game, but thrive in the long run, we, too, have had to make some changes.

Last week as an organization, Times Community News (seven newspapers across the Southland) eliminated 14 positions. Good, hard-working people, kicked to the sidelines.

It wasn’t fun. But it had to be done.

And, going forward, we’ll continue to have additional changes to strengthen our business model. First up is the elimination of our Monday printed product.

You heard me right. Or maybe I should say, you read me right.

Beginning this Monday, and I want to stress, Monday only, you won’t have a printed Daily Pilot to read.

A couple of people in my promotions department came up with a way to put a positive spin on it.

“The Daily Pilot is going green one day-a-week.”

OK, I like it.

Well, that’s really not such a bad thought. And besides, that’s what my promotions department people are paid for.

But don’t worry, we’ll still keep you up-to-date with all the local news on Mondays. You’ll just need to check our website at dailypilot.com.

So some people are going to wonder what the problem is.

Here it is in a nutshell: Total up all the advertising dollars in the Monday product, and the revenue doesn’t meet the costs of printing and delivering that newspaper.

So, even though I barely passed Economics 101, I can even figure this one out.

Now, I don’t expect everyone to like the decision, but business is business in an ever-challenging environment.

The good news is that the other days of the week are strong, and I don’t expect drastic changes there; just some fine tuning.

The Daily Pilot continues to have a strong, committed staff to bring you your local news.

Please feel free to share with us your thoughts and/or concerns.

After all, we pride ourselves in being your community newspaper. And that’s not going to change any time soon.

TOM JOHNSON is the publisher. Send story ideas to [email protected].