Rather than wait around for a Newspaper Czar to save the newspaper industry, entrepreneurs in Detroit are doing it themselves. Via Romenesko, the AP reports:
SOUTHFIELD (AP) — Two veteran publishers announced plans Tuesday to launch a newspaper to fill a void left when the city’s two major dailies reduced home delivery earlier this year.
Mark Stern, 63, and brother Gary Stern, 67, said they hope to publish within 60 days the first issue of a newspaper serving the Detroit area. The Detroit Daily Press is expected to sell for 50 cents daily and $1 on Sundays.
They said they were working to secure contracts with two printing plants and lease office space and were looking to hire department heads for the privately funded newspaper.
Mark Stern said the Detroit Daily Press should appeal to older readers who prefer a print copy of the paper, and its primary niche will be those who want their paper home-delivered. The newspaper also will have a Web site with a brief summary of the news for nonsubscribers.
“There is a definite need here,” Mark Stern said at a news conference in the Detroit suburb of Southfield. “People are used to having a newspaper in their hand. … That’s what we’re going to do — provide a newspaper.”