So long to the Rocky

[Daniel Hunt]

A MESSAGE FROM ACES: The journalism's light shines a little dimmer with today's closure of the Rocky Mountain News

The Rocky Mountain News published for the last time on Friday, February 27, two months shy of 150 years of service to Colorado and America.

The end of a publication that's been part of the culture of a region for so long saddens us. Its demise hurts journalism and therefore democracy, and it will leave no small hole in people's lives. We are heartened to see even politicians agree when hearing the news on Thursday.

"I really do believe that the First Amendment and the free exercise of the press is at the heart of what makes us strong," Gov. Bill Ritter said. "We lose a Colorado icon, we lose a newspaper that has contributed so much, I think, to the history of this state."

Our hearts go out to the staff of the Rocky Mountain News who have suffered such an anxious year that ends only with this. We're glad to see the Denver Post has hired some of the Rocky staff, and we hope copy editors are also considered. We are also grateful for the Rocky's role in ACES, assisting as host of our national conference in 2008 and adding talented and dedicated copy editors to our membership as well as our executive committee.

It's not good that another city in the United States will no longer have competing major newspapers. The Chicago Sun-Times, in a Feb. 17 editorial, touted the virtue of competition when it comes to uncovering corruption. "Truth be told, the next big exclusive in this story [about Sen. Roland Burris] might very well come from the Tribune or another paper," it said. "It has happened before, and it will happen again -- we break a story and the Trib tops us, or they break a story and we top them. Competition brings out the best in everybody. What matters most to the people of Chicago is that professional reporters are finding out stuff people ought to know."

We urge owners, advertisers and readers not to give up on newspapers or any medium that presents real reporting of news and information. People still love newspapers. They help people live their lives, and they play an important role in a strong democracy.

[Peter Fisk]

Farewell to a great American newspaper. I had the privilege of working competitively against the Rocky during my stint at the Denver Post. Godspeed to all the Rocky staffers. Let’s hope and pray that the Rocky’s high-quality journalism lives on in some form.

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Single copies of the last edition of the Rocky sold out early this morning at our local stores and are already selling for nearly $14 apiece on eBay, only a few hours after rolling off the presses.

[Peter Fisk]

Some of the Rocky folks are attempting to establish an online news site that continues their journalistic mission. That's the spirit.

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We've seen similar efforts in several cities now, and we're going to see more and more of them. I maintain my position that some of these operations can -- and should -- evolve into established, well-respected, professional, nonprofit online news orgs, possibly even partially funded by government. ... And I still hold out hope that there will be enough digital ad revenue and/or subscription demand in the future to support comprehensive local and regional online news on a profitable basis.