Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) In exactly four weeks, Buffalo will no longer have a major daily newspaper seven days a week.
"Twenty years ago I would have been shocked by this, but not so much anymore," said Mike Igoe, Communications professor at SUNY Fredonia and former reporter at Channel 2.
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"In fact, in doing some research, I found that 30% of the largest newspapers in the country are going down to less than seven days a week," he told WBEN.
Editor in Chief Margaret Kenny Giancola wrote to subscribers "we live in a world that has come to embrace digital communication, and this change reflects that reality."
Igoe put it more succinctly. "Most newspaper readers tend to be older. And that audience, I'm sorry to say, is dying off."
There is also something else driving the move.
"There was a time when ad revenues were stronger on the newspaper side rather than the digital side. But that has flipped. That has changed the whole equation and that's where they're going to prioritize."
What does Igoe see as the next big shift?
"Everything is going digital. And the landscape is so crowded that anyone with a pay wall has to figure out what they can do to stand out among the competition."