Turtles all the way down

It finally has happened — a major daily newspaper switching to a pure online format.

The Christian Science Monitor plans major changes in April 2009 that are expected to make it the first newspaper with a national audience to shift from a daily print format to an online publication that is updated continuously each day.

It was inevitable and only a matter of time. Aside from a fairly large number of people that still prefer their news in print, I can think of so many reasons why online news works better. You don’t get lost in endless ads trying to find content. You can subscribe to the topics and areas you’re most interested in. You can read it anytime and anywhere without carrying it around. You don’t have to worry about recycling piles of read newspapers. It will be easier for the newspapers to individually target advertising.

I could go on.

This move was likely driven by a combination of economics and user preference. The newspapers that master online presence will survive. Those that don’t will not.

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