Unpublished letters to the editor

Author’s note: Let me be honest, I miss the daily arrival of a hard copy of the Richmond Times-Dispatch to our house. Any number of my friends have acknowledged—there is nothing like holding the daily newspaper in our hands. I agree. But because of subscription price increases and reduction in newspaper staff, we stopped our home delivery. We now receive the paper in a digital format. Included here are two letters to the editor that I submitted to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Neither was accepted for publication, and I’m fine with that. But, I still remain disappointed that the Times-Dispatch, and perhaps other local newspapers are not properly reporting to their remaining readers the stories of the challenges they face in publishing a paper everyday. Bill Pike

Sunday, October 1, 2023

In October 2021, my wife and I stopped our subscription and the home delivery of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. We switched to an E-edition. I have not adjusted to this change. I absolutely despise trying to read the Times-Dispatch in this format.

Because of this change, I’m a less informed member of the Richmond community. I barely skim the paper. Rarely do I go back for an in-depth reading of an article that caught my attention. I have missed the obituaries of cherished colleagues because of my stubbornness.

I’m sure running a newspaper today is a challenge. In June 2022, the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University reported that two newspapers per week in America shutdown. When a local newspaper shuts its doors, a “news desert” is created. This can lead to communities receiving no local news or inaccurate reporting of important stories.

In March 2020, Lee Enterprises acquired the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Declines in readership, revenue, and cuts in staff had already impacted the paper. Clearly, I’m no expert on the running of a newspaper, but I believe Lee Enterprises is focused on one thing—turning a profit.

Times-Dispatch readers might be surprised to note during one month how many advertisements appear in the A section of the newspaper compared to the number of Letters to the Editor. The advertisements trounce the letters.

With Lee Enterprises, I sense a significant shortcoming to the readers of the Times-Dispatch is the newspaper’s inability to report its own untold story.

The Times-Dispatch regularly peers into the lives of the people in our community for stories. Shouldn’t loyal readers expect the same introspective journalism into the daily operation of its newspaper?

Bill Pike
Henrico County, Virginia

Wednesday, October 25, 2023

With great interest I read the following headline in the Sunday, October 22 edition of the Richmond Times-Dispatch: The Times-Dispatch launching Reader Advisory Board.
Several thoughts ran through my mind as I pondered the headline—about time, too little too late, and a silent chuckle.

Newspapers have become comatose dinosaurs in America. In June 2022, the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University reported that two newspapers per week in America shutdown.
In their shift away from hard copy to on-line versions, newspapers have left a trail of disgruntled former loyal readers. I’m one of those displeased readers.

October 2021, my wife and I stopped our subscription and the home delivery of the Times-Dispatch. We switched to an E-edition. I have not adjusted to this change. I absolutely despise trying to read the Times-Dispatch in this format.

The Times-Dispatch is owned by Lee Enterprises. From my perspective, today’s newspaper owners are driven by one thing—money, turning a profit. How else do you explain the significant reduction in newspaper staff and the elimination of cherished local features in the paper.

This money driven dysfunction comes at a time when our communities need more than ever dedicated, honorable journalists reporting the facts, not misinformation.

What is even more disconcerting to me is the Times-Dispatch’s inability to report to its remaining readers the paper’s own internal struggle to keep publishing. Style Weekly and Axios Richmond have done a better job of reporting this story.

Editor Coates is correct “Great story ideas are the lifeblood of any strong news organization.” Clearly, Richmond has many story possibilities.

But there is another critical “lifeblood” piece to writing those stories—journalists. Has the Lee Enterprises’ scalpel in newsrooms made the coverage of new story pursuits unachievable?

Bill Pike
Henrico County, Virginia