Dear John

This isn't a letter to John, or any other individual, but it's actually a farewell to the Los Angeles Times paper edition.  I called the Times this afternoon to cancel our subscription.  It's been a long time coming.  

We used to subscribe many moons ago to the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, because it was a cheaper paper at the time.  When the Examiner closed up shop, it was either take a local paper, or the LA Times, which I felt had some meat on it.  We've been with the Times ever since, probably close to 20 years or so.  The paper has been getting thinner and thinner over the past year or so and there isn't much meat left on it anymore

I'm not going to blame the Internet, but the reality is I can get local news, national and world news quickly and easily by reading it off of the Internet, either on my iPad or on my computer.  I don't have to wait until tomorrow to learn that Van Cliburn passed away yesterday. I have come to the conclusion that having to shell out close to $10.00 per week to receive a paper copy of the newspaper is an exorbitant price that we just can't justify spending anymore.  It doesn't make financial sense and my wife and I made the decision to finally pull the plug this week.  The savings will pay for the iPad and then some in less than a year's time.

I think what's bugging me the most about this is the way their customer service department, like many others, has deteriorated over the years.  I had to wend my way through countless layers of choices to find my way to where I wanted to be.  When I told them I wanted to cancel our service, they wanted to know why.  I guess I could have just lied and said we were moving and then it would have been done, but I felt they needed to know they were just too expensive to continue.  

It was then I got the sales pitch.  That's fine because it's what I expected.  But you need to listen LA Times.  When a customer says no, take that answer and run with it.  Don't continue to beat a dead horse as all it's going to do is smell further down the road should that customer ever want to come back.  Be gracious and accept the fact that you're a dying breed and unless you reinvent yourself, you're not going to be good for much of anything much longer.

So now I'll get my news via my iPad, probably like many other people are doing, including this guy who we saw on our walk along Olvera Street last month.  Tuesday will be the last day we receive a copy of a newspaper.