By BILL YEE
In the digital age I mourn the loss of books, magazines, and newspapers. Books are still around. But many people now read books using their Kindle or iPad.
There’s nothing like falling asleep on the couch reading a good book. I’m a history guy but love science fiction and mysteries.
My youth was enriched by reading the works of Robert Heinlein, Raymond Chandler, and John Steinbeck, just to name a few authors. I especially loved reading the biographies of Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Winston Churchill in the 8th grade, which inspired me to become a history teacher.
I used to subscribe to Time, Newsweek, and Life magazines. I looked forward to their weekly delivery although the mailman was not as thrilled.
These magazines kept me connected to current events and the world. My students would use the magazines for their research projects. Life magazine always had great photography. Many of the photos were iconic. If “a picture is worth a thousand words,” Life magazine embodied that.
I remember delivering the Sunday edition of The San Francisco Examiner. It was a thick newspaper fill with ads and coupons that my sister-in-law Merry would cut out and save for us. It was a heavy newspaper to carry and deliver.
Today The Los Angeles Times is really a shell of itself. I used to look forward reading the Sunday edition lying on my couch with a doughnut and a cup of coffee. The paper is now very thin. I read it mostly online. It not the same experience as reading a physical copy of a paper.
More importantly, I don’t get to review all the articles in a physical copy but just scroll the ones that are highlighted. Another example is Yahoo News. I find that most of their articles fall under the category of click bait.
I used to read The San Francisco Chronicle on my bus ride to Lowell High School. I always read and folded The Sporting Green first. Second would be columnists Herb Caen and Charles McCabe. Even standing up it made a 45-minute bus ride pass quickly.
The economics of the print industry have also affected The Rafu, no longer a daily or semi-daily newspaper but a weekly.
How does the loss of print media affect our society? For example, a newspaper’s political endorsement carried a lot of weight in the past. In the classic movie “Citizen Kane,” the title character had quite a bit of influence on the political process.
As publications shift to more of an online presence, local newspapers have suffered. Again, the economics have led to many local newspapers to stop publishing. I remember my in-laws getting The Santa Barbara News Press delivered each day.
Locally based newspapers like The Santa Barbara News Press and Oakland Tribune are no more!
The paper I delivered in my youth, The San Francisco Examiner, mainly has an online presence.
We used to get a monthly community paper, Around Alhambra, published by the Alhambra Chamber of Commerce. It was a great update of local community events. Due to the cost publishing a hard copy to roughly 20,000 residents, it recently shifted to an online paper.
I feel for the elderly of Alhambra, who are not connected virtually. They have lost connection to their community.
Getting one’s information online and selected from limited sources, especially at the local community level, means that what is fact or the true sequences of an event may not always be accurate or objective.
Your search history may only present you with articles that feed only your personal bias. So again are you not getting both sides of an issue.
It means a less informed public. It hurts the narrative and leads to less compromise in the political process.
I believe that this has contributed to the current polarization of our society.
Addendum: Former Rafu Shimpo editor and Edgar Award-winning mystery writer Naomi Hirahara will be appearing at Grace Bridge Chapel on Sunday, Sept. 13, at 1 p.m. to discuss her latest effort, “Crown City.” Grace Bridge Chapel is at 300 Mission Dr. in Camarillo. Ms. Hirahara’s appearance is jointly sponsored by the Ventura JACL and Grace Bridge Chapel.
Bill Yee is a retired Alhambra High School history teacher. He can be reached at paperson52@gmail.com. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of The Rafu Shimpo.