Step On Your Face 2 -

SF Weekly vs Bay Guardian Settlement . . .

The previously established generation of free weeklies are now known as Shopper-Service publications. They were supposed to offer a lower cost alternative for small business operators like plumbers and house painters to advertise than the local Metro-Regional newspapers. Some of them have thrived in the post-WW2 suburban environment.

The newer "Alt" Weeklies are aimed at a different set of advertisers: Entertainment and Leisure businesses. There may be a bit of overlap sometimes with regard to some local restaurants, for example.

The basic "content" consists of a calendar format. They present some entertainment or leisure event each day for the entire week. It's a recognizable formula, but in and of itself has no redeeming social value whatsoever.

In the local VVM outlet around here, their concept of Culture is the promotion of sexual fetish conventions. And their concept of Literacy is comic books.

At least you can always recognize the VVM readers: they're the ones with hair on the palms of their hands.

Ironically, the original Village Voice was established partly to displace an entrenched machine. Now the corporate entity that bears their name has become another machine - an Infernal Machine.

Just a brief word on the issue of Reader Figures. Any such statistics coming from free publications have no credibility, in my opinion.

:: Romenesko ::

:: VVM :: (wikipedia) ::

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