The New York Times now has a Chicago edition, coming one month after the establishment of a San Francisco edition. The Chicago paper will incorporate the reporting of some ex-Chicago Tribune journalists. The venture is a move to attract new readers, and Chicago is the second of what may be several cities that will have local coverage by the Times.
While not a departure from the traditional (failing) model, this seems like a reasonably good idea. At least it’s a more productive step than laying off good reporters. The new papers will have the prestige of the Times’ name with the appeal of local news. The proposed partnership with the Berkeley graduate journalism school for a start-up in the Bay Area sounds especially interesting. Young, motivated journalism students could prove to be a valuable asset to a paper. More innovation like this is necessary if newspapers have any hope of surviving.
