” There is another marble slab in the Portsmouth newspaper graveyard. It was erected yesterday, silently and without pomp and ceremony, and is sacred to the memory of ‘The News, Daily and Weekly.’ After a brief and fitful career the paper has joined the immortals, and may it long rest in peace.”
The News was launched out as a weekly by Gus B Barlow1 about a year and a half ago. It struggled along in a modest way until a few weeks ago, when the publisher Gus B Barlow, conceived the idea of a daily edition. It was expected that subscribers would flock in by the hundreds and the Daily prove a bonanza. The first issue appeared two weeks ago Saturday morning, and only two weeks were necessary to convince Mr. Barlow that the paper could not win. Accordingly a council of the force was held at the office Sunday morning and it was decided to suspend.”
“The decline and downfall of the News demonstrates again that there is no room for a third daily paper in Portsmouth. Three times this has been attempted and three times it has met with disaster. The fact of the matter is that the local field is so well covered by the two afternoon dailies that there is no room for another paper. The present daily papers in Portsmouth -particularly the Times– are better than those of cities more than twice our size. the people know this and rag-baby papers have no show on earth other than sinking money for those who into going in the deal.”2
- Augustus B. Barlow
- One More Slab in the Portsmouth Newspaper Graveyard. (1898, June 6). Portsmouth Daily Times, p. 3.
