The bells have been tolling for quite a while over end-of-life scenarios for print journalism. Whether you think the sky is falling or not, you would do well to read Clay Shirky's well reasoned case in his August 19, 2014 post, "Last Call, the end of the printed newspaper". See if his facts, case histories, arguments and advice-to-transition resonate with you.

"Many people have lamented the unpredictability in the media environment occasioned by the arrival of digital devices and networks, but the slow implosion of newspapers has been widely and correctly predicted for some time now. Print ad revenues have fallen 65% in a decade, 2013 saw the lowest ever recorded, and 2014 will be worse." - Clay Shirky, Last Call

Journalistic survival, according to Mr. Shirky, depends on honing your skills to leverage the value of social media, understanding the vital importance of data, and learning to work in teams who understand and share these skills.

"The first piece of advice is the most widely discussed in journalism circles — get good with numbers. The old ‘story accompanied by a chart’ was merely data next to journalism; increasingly, the data is the journalism." - Clay Shirky, Last Call

Our advice: read the story and forward it to your professional friends.