US: the Star Tribune and stealing newspapers

Posted by Diana Epstein on April 18, 2006 at 3:54 PM

The Star Tribune, in an attempt to cut costs, is making moves to counter the “stealing of newspapers” by both its staff and people who buy the newspaper at vending locations and take more than one paper.

Last month, in an effort to cut costs, the Star Tribune in Minneaopolis told its reporters that free copies of the newspaper would no longer be available to them around the newsroom. Instead the staff was offered an electronic edition of the paper and the option of purchasing the paper for 25 cents, half the retail cost. So journalists, although they have limited perks, cannot even pick up a free paper, a result of their own labor.

In a recent research project, Steve Alexander, senior vice president for circulation of the Star Tribune found that an alarming amount of people were picking up papers they had not paid for after additional on-site racks were put in service.

"Taking more than one newspaper from a rack when you have only inserted enough money for one paper is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Employees who steal newspapers will put their jobs at risk. There is zero tolerance when it comes to stealing from our company, even if it is a 25-cent newspaper," said Alexander.

"We were looking for ways to save money that do not impact our product or our customers," said Ben Taylor, the paper's senior vice president of marketing and communication. He said the papers personal copies totaled more than 4,000 on weekdays and 5,000 on Sunday and that now cost savings for the paper was "significant."

But if journalists are forced to pay for a copy of their labor when they can read it online, who will want to pay for subscriptions? Where will brand loyalty go if journalists can’t even pick up a copy of their own work?

Source: The New York Times