In a way, it was like watching the progression of a terminal illness. Slowly, it takes away all that you know of a person, so the end is actually almost a relief.
It was no surprise the East Valley Tribune would close, the victim of the same circumstances which have brought down so many newspapers across the country. The paper had sputtered along for the last year or so, cutting daily publication, then subscription fees and finally, just closing its doors altogether.
The paper had become a shadow of its former self, a paper we hardly recognized in comparison to the one which published a series of articles a year ago which would eventually win the Pulitzer Prize. By the time the news arrived that the publication would close December 31, it was almost a relief.
Some of the EVT's best reporters and columnists had already jumped ship. Its website had become a little sloppy and slow to update, and the paper itself had become a mere vehicle for the coupons and inserts it carried to a dwindling number of doorsteps.
There are those, no doubt, who have already blamed the paper itself for its demise, claiming its editorial bent was too liberal, and out-of-touch with the mainstream.
I blame the same terminal illness which has felled so many other publications: Craigslist and the Internet. News aggregators have set the information price point at zero, and no one pays for classified advertising any more -- once the bread-and-butter of newspaper revenue.
I suspect many people won't even notice the paper is gone. But silencing it also means we are losing another set of critical eyes and ears in the community, another voice dedicated to holding the feet of public officials to the fire, and another staff of reporters making beat calls and asking tough questions every day.
Best of luck to the 140 people who will spend the next few months looking for work in a shrinking business. Let's hope they use their talents to continue to create good journalism.
