City Paper Arts Editor on the State of Book Coverage at Alt-Weeklies
By AAN Staff
august 29, 2008 08:21 am
"Books coverage at American daily newspapers is asphyxiating. That's the bad news," writes
Washington City Paper's Mark Athitakis. "Here's more bad news: The situation is just as dire at alternative weeklies." He goes on to cite the
cost-cutting that occurred when
Creative Loafing purchased City Paper last year as an example. But he says there are reasons to be optimistic about alt-weeklies. "We've taken one hell of a beating, but our basic mandate -- to give people informed and lively coverage of subjects that often fall outside the larger media's radar -- remains intact," Athitakis writes. "And books are still part of that mandate." He wraps up his post by listing some tips for any critics hoping to contribute to alt-weeklies.