Troubles and transparency

So the venerable Daily Hampshire Gazette had an interesting way of demonstrating dire financial conditions--besides the anemic page count--on today's Front Page, with an article about Northampton's First Night finding another sugar daddy to replace the $5,000 cash donation nixed by a "major sponsor" after 25 years of support.

Of course they were smart enough to hold off until paragraph three before admitting that major sponsor was none other than the Daily Hampshire Gazette. Although they will continue to promote the New Year's Eve celebration event on their pages (like they did today) and publish a First Night supplement and the event's program, but a sizable chunk of cash is no more.

As a former longtime small business owner I appreciate how tough it is to accommodate all the hand outs requested by worthy agencies (I would get roughly three per week); and product is a lot easier to donate than cash.

To pitch their product to Valley businesses, a generation of Gazette ad reps chanted the mantra "advertising doesn't cost, it pays." Now the shoe is on the other foot, looking withered and worn.