The Magnolia Reporter has details on the decision of WEHCO Medica, owner of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette among other newspapers and media properties, to end daily publication of newspapers in Camden and Magnolia.
The newspapers will continue as weekly newspapers and have a digital presence as well.
The Magnolia Reporter notes that the company has been printing its South Arkansas newspapers, also including El Dorado and Texarkana, in Little Rock, a change that has affected deadlines at the smaller dailies.
The Magnolia Reporter, by the way, is an independent free online publication that depends on advertising revenue and competes with the Magnolia paper. The decline in ad revenue was cited by WEHCO in its decision to change from daily to weekly publication. It said both the Magnolia and Camden papers were losing money.
Internet disruption of print media — along with changing reading habits — has caused dramatic drops in paid circulation and advertising nationwide. The Democrat-Gazette has ended print circulation in more than a third of Arkansas counties, offering instead digital subscriptions with use of loaned computer tablets.
The Arkansas Times converts this month from weekly to a glossy monthly publication in