It might seem hypocritical, because most everything I post on this site comes right from local papers, but... after seeing the special condo pull-out section in the Downtown Journal, I wonder how independent local papers (like the Downtown Journal) can be given the huge portion of their advertising revenue that comes from new condo ads. Newspapers are very sensitive to advertising revenue, and if one or two big advertisers pull their ads (or threaten to), they notice. Would that keep them from reporting less-than-glowing stories about new development?
Of course it's hardly that much different from most small neighborhood papers that report on their advertisers... e.g. a story on the local barber shop, hardware store, or bar that also happens to advertise in the paper. And, to be fair, I've been pretty impressed with most of the reporting in local TC papers. They're stuck in the middle, having to please their indepednetly-owned and big-development advertisers while catering to mostly NIMBY readers. Not easy!
At the same time, I could do with less Condo cheerleading.
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