Spokesman-Review moving to one edition
The Spokesman-Review will begin publishing a consolidated single edition of the newspaper starting in late November.
In place of separate editions for Spokane, Spokane Valley and Idaho, the newspaper will be consolidated with a focus on regional issues that are important to all readers, Editor Steven A. Smith said Monday.
“The change will help us deliver news with more efficiency and focus on large issues of interest to our regional audience,” Smith said. “We’ll produce a single edition daily with regional news from the Valley and Idaho and other areas, highlighted on a special page in the Northwest section.”
The paper will continue to provide zoned advertising for Idaho six days a week, Sunday through Friday, said Shaun O’L. Higgins, the newspaper’s director of sales and marketing.
In addition, Higgins said the paper will continue to publish the weekly Handle Extra in Kootenai County and Your Voice sections for Post Falls, Spokane Valley and north and south Spokane. “These sections enable us to cover and distribute highly localized news and advertising to our readers,” he said, adding that the paper may add additional Voice publications in the future.
“For years our research has shown concern among readers in North Idaho that they were not receiving enough news about Spokane and the Spokane Valley, while Spokane readers complained they received too little news of regional importance from North Idaho,” Higgins said. “This step assures that news of regional importance is delivered to all of our readers simultaneously.”
Publisher W. Stacey Cowles said the decision to produce a single edition does not change the company’s commitment to the region. “We remain committed to being the number one provider of news and advertising in the Inland Northwest for many years to come.” But the change reflects the need for tough decisions in the face of a struggling business model.
The company’s long-term plan is “to make sure we are applying the right amount of resources to serve our existing audiences, adapt to changes in their media habits and, simultaneously, extend our reach and coverage into the areas to which younger readers are migrating.
“Our success in doing that won’t be measured in a month, or even year, but over time,” Cowles said.
The consolidation to a single edition is part of a larger companywide plan to offset rising delivery costs and declining advertising and circulation revenues. Last week the newsroom announced 14 layoffs, and additional cuts are planned by the end of the year in the circulation, marketing and prepress departments. Cowles said the combination of layoffs and early retirement incentives will eliminate about 40 positions from the company.
The layoffs and the single edition will require a significant reassessment of the newsroom’s coverage plan, Smith said. Editors have already begun the process of restructuring beats to focus on both local and regional stories.
Smith said the changes leave open the possibility of more easily updating the newspaper with late-breaking news, similar to the routine updates on the newspaper’s Web site, spokesmanreview.com, which publishes digitally on a nearly 24-hour, 7-day-a-week cycle.