Extra, Extra! Read All About It!
From all of the calls I’m getting from people asking if I got a newspaper, I guess it’s something I really should have thought of. Another thing I didn’t do yesterday and should have was gone over to the Newseum. They have a display of “Today’s Front Pages,” but the online gallery has over 700 pages from 65 countries. They’re keeping a link to the November 5, 2008 gallery in their archives.
The stories from around the country are of people waiting in long lines to get newspapers, going everywhere to find them sold out and seeing people buying up tons of copies destined to be sold on eBay. There’s an e-mail with PDFs of 10 front pages from around the country going around as well. And while part of me would like to have a physical paper, the other part thinks of all the clutter I already have at home. Digital will be just fine for me.
There was a status comment thread on Facebook last night with the general consensus being, “Who reads a physical newspaper anymore?” and it made me think of the co-worker yesterday morning who was bragging that he got a few copies of the Post and then continued to brag how he’d hoarded papers from 9/11 as well. The glee with which he spoke of that had me removing myself from the conversation fairly quickly.
Did anyone snag a paper from yesterday? What are your plans for preserving, displaying or even selling it?
I grabbed a USA Today in the lobby of my building yesterday. I try to get a physical paper when there is a big event like this. I have one from Clinton’s inauguration, from the start of the first Gulf War, the day Atlanta snagged the 96 Olympics and…of course…9/11. I never really considered it creepy but when you mentioned your coworker I had to ask myself why I do it. It comes from being fascinated by seeing some of the old clippings and magazines that my grandparents kept over the years. I always liked being able to pull out something tangible when talking about history to say “here it is…look..this is what was going on in the world that day…” In addition to the main story you get a snapshot of life at that moment from the other stories, ads, etc in the paper that day. Hell you even get the weather.
I really want a copy of the San Franscisco Chronicle. That is an epic front page. I saw a few on ebay yesterday for 10$ each. I don’t think I’ll get one, nor will I sell my USA Today. It’ll go in the box with the rest.
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Hrm, I would have to say because you can get things online but there is something about a newspaper… not just for me to pull out and remember, but for other generations. Some of the things that mom has shown me has really struck a chord. To literally hold a piece of history in your hand.
I scored a USA Today and a NYT for a friend.
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