As we slowly watch the Indianapolis Star turn into a pamphlet, the future looks bleak as newspapers around the nation face up to the changing habits of the reading public.

Today, Colorado’s oldest newspaper, The Rocky Mountain News, shut down, 55 days short of its 150^th birthday. The first edition was produced on the banks of Cherry Creek in Denver on April 23, 1859.

Owner E.W. Scripps Company reported yesterday that the newspaper lost $16 million last year and the company was unable to find a buyer.  The News is the latest, and largest, newspaper to fail as America slips deeper into a recession. Several others are lining up to face the inevitable.

Shockingly, earlier this week, The San Francisco Chronicle joined the lengthening list of imperiled newspapers as its owner, the Hearst Corporation, warned it may cease publication if it can’t reduce expenses dramatically within the next few weeks. It’s Northern California’s largest newspaper and began production 144 years ago.

With losses of more than $50 million last year, the Chronicle is off to an even worse start this year.

Hearst also has put Seattle’s oldest newspaper, the Post-Intelligencer, up for sale in January and said at that time that if it can’t find a buyer in the next 60 days the paper would likely close or continue to exist only online. That deadline is upon us.

Four owners of 33 U.S. daily newspapers have sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the past 2 1/2 months.

The relevance of newspapers in our lives is no longer as people turn to other media for their news. And, as they continue to cut staff and costs and become smaller tabloid-sized papers with little enterprise reporting and pages of obituaries and police and fire runs, they create their own self-fulfillng prophecy.

US Airways finally saw the light today and announced that, beginning March 1, it will quit charging for soft drinks in the coach cabin.  Until then, it’ll still cost you extra to get a  soda, juice, tea, water and coffee.  Beer and harder stuff still costs.

I was on a couple of US Airways flights week before last and I was embarrassed for the flight attendants who had to drag the cart down the aisle and get no takers.  It’s possible they’re OK with that since it takes less time and work.  But they did look sheepish.

 The company backed off the fee when rivals didn’t go along.  It does show there’s a limit to how far the carriers can push travelers who have suffered fee after fee for items and services that once were complimentary.

It really gives the proverbial “Unique Selling Proposition” to Southwest Airlines.

The airline industry, hard-hit last year by soaring fuel costs, became more aggressive in charging fees for items that previously had been included in the fare or eliminating items such as pillows, blankets and magazines.

Now, if they’d back off the charge to check luggage I and many other travelers will be happier.  I’m OK with the 50-pound weight limit but it seems like being able to take a reasonable amount of gear without extra cost should be part of the deal.

I’m just glad this ala carte pricing is being reviewed before they started to charge for sitting down.  Don’t think I could stand that long on a cross-country flight.

Now that the digital television transition is moved back to June, the Congress turns to another burning issue in telecommunications. Next week, hearings begin on the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act.

The goal, eventually, is for satellite companies such as Dish Network and DirectTV, to carry the local television stations in their markets. Cable systems are required to do so. It’s the peoples’ acknowledgment of the importance of local broadcasting in delivering relevant news, weather and emergency information to the communities they serve.

Congress established a blanket license in 1999 to the then-fledgling satellite companies.with the Satellite Home Viewers Improvement Act (SHVIA). It’s been renewed in five year intervals and it’s time to hold the satellite guys to their original vision.

Among other provisions, satellite companies were allowed to import distant network signals to viewers who couldn’t receive a local signal. For instance, in Terre Haute, which has no ABC Television Network affiliate, satellite operators can bring in stations from New York or Atlanta. It seems to me the best option would be to offer the folks in Terre Haute our WRTV signal which is already on satellite. I’m betting they have a payment deal with those distant stations.

You can’t get the local Terre Haute NBC, CBS or Fox affiliates if you’re a satellite customer there. They offer those affiliates from other cities.

And now, the Congress lead by Rep Rick Boucher (D-VA), the new chair of the House Communications, Tech & Internet Subcommittee, will tackle the subject. Boucher’s district includes one the television markets that have no local stations available to satellite customers.

There’s no announced schedule for the House hearings but the Senate starts work on this next Wednesday in its Judiciary Committee.

Local broadcasters prove time and again their value to the community, not only through support of community events and interests, but reports on severe weather, Amber Alerts to find missing children and putting issues before the public that keep government honest.

The government understood that importance when they directed the cable companies to carry local broadcast stations.The satellite guys have had more than a decade to build their business. They need to be held to the same standard as their cable competitors.

Tonight at midnight, nearly 36% of America’s full-power television stations will be gone. A total of 641 stations will move exclusively to digital broadcasting. Earlier this year, 220 stations shut down before the previously-mandated date. At midnight, another 421 will join them. There are about 1,800 full power TV stations in the country.

The largest market making the early switch is San Diego (market #28) where our co-owned KGTV (ABC), along with KFMB-TV (CBS) and KSWB-TV (Fox) will shut off their analog transmitters. San Diego holdouts include NBC-owned KNSD-TV, KUSI-TV (Ind) and KPBS-TV (PBS). San Diego’s one of the most heavily cabled (and satellite-served) market in the U.S., so it will be interesting to see what issues pop up.

The FCC has published a complete list of full power stations. Only two stations in the Indianapolis market, WCJL-TV and WIPB-TV (PBS in Muncie) are shutting down tonight. One station, WHMB-TV  shut down early.  Three stations in South Bend and three in Fort Wayne will also shut down at midnight tonight.

The FCC dispatched staff to 72 market where the impact is expected to be the greatest.

The new date set for the transition to take place for the rest of the stations is no later than June 12.

OK, the President “called” and the stay of analog TV’s execution is official. Next date with the gallows is no later than June 12. Obama’s timing built a lot of dramatic tension. He took more than a week after the bill was submitted to him by the U.S. Congress. It’s left a lot of stations scrambling.

There’s still a provision allowing stations to shut down next week, if they make requests, file a lot of papers and the FCC is OK with it. One market in Indiana, South Bend, has three stations, affilates of NBC, CBS and Fox, that have filed to shut off their analog signals. Not sure of whether the government has given them the OK.

We have a sister station in Bakersfield, California, a market in which all the stations except the Spanish language Univision station have filed to shut down and have been denied. As I understand, the FCC would be all right with it if one of them would remain on the air and follow what the government calls a “Nightlight” plan. They would use that channel to broadcast information to those left behind with no way to watch the digital channels about the transition plan and emergency information. They’re trying to figure that out

In Indianapolis, according to the Nielsen ratings people, about 70% of the market is “Completely Ready” for the digital transition; 22% are “Partially Ready” and 7% are “Completely Unready”. “Partially Ready” means they have some TV sets would need to be connected to a device or service that would display the digital signals on an older TV. So, about 72,000 homes “with television” would be “without television” if all of us shut off our analog transmitters next week

A lot of folks don’t think this extra time will make any difference. We’ll see.