About a year ago a meeting was held in Washington at which representatives of the leading American newspapers lamented they did not know where the industry was going, beyond going down. The Democrats, seeing a demise of their handmaidens, attempted just this past month to save the mainstream newspapers, by taxing the electronic media. On May 24th of this year the Federal Trade Commission floated a trial balloon working paper designed to re-invent the media by taxing blogs like the Drudge Report and giving the proceeds to the New York Times and Washington Post. This did not even go over well with the Democratic Congress. Never fear though. Big Brother never sleeps. He will be back.

 

 

Can you tell me where we’re going

Said inventor to the scribe

The scribe had not the knowing

But he thought the scribbler tribe

Had naught to fear from printing

Though he wished to make it clear

That while Gutenberg was hinting

That the death of scribes was near

It was time, he felt, that reason

Should prevail in such a case

And that printing, while in season

Would not scribblers jobs erase

Can you tell me where we’re going

Said the journalist to the blog

The blog had not the knowing

But it knew ‘twas just a cog

In a world wide web of knowledge

That is there in one big store

So a journalism college

Isn’t needed any more

And the Gutenberg invention

That put papers on the lawn

Faces daily intervention

And will soon in time be gone

Now what happens to the readers

All the kiddies, dads and mammys

Why they’ll simply have new leaders

Guys in bathrobes and pajammys

The politicos will try to

Save the NYT and others

As they slip beneath the bayou

Joining other extinct brothers