Richard Manship, president and CEO of Capital City Press—publisher of the The Advocate—says the Baton Rouge daily newspaper plans to expand into the New Orleans market with a specialized print edition in the fall. The Advocate is laying the groundwork to reach into the market following the announcement by The Times-Picayune that the newspaper will reduce publication to three days a week this fall while beefing up its online report. Manship says The Advocate will add staff to supply coverage of the New Orleans area, but did not provide specific numbers, and says plans are still evolving. The Times-Picayune, which is owned by Advance Publications Inc., announced plans in June to convert the 175-year-old New Orleans daily to a 24-hour digital news operation with a print edition only on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The newspaper also cut about 200 positions. Poynter reports The Advocate plans to enter the market in October, when The Times-Picayune print cutbacks take effect. “Now, we can’t staff a ton of people down there because the economics aren’t going to work. We actually have to make money doing this. And so, we’ll start out with what we think can get the job done,” the publication quotes Manship as saying. When Advocate Publisher David Manship spoke to Business Report for its June 26 cover story on the changing media climate in south Louisiana, he said: “We’re not very adventurous. We’re going to watch and see what other people do.”
Editor’s note: This story has been changed since its original publication.
Today’s poll question: Do you think ‘The Advocate’ will be successful in its plan to enter the New Orleans market?
