Printed media (books, newspapers, magazines, newsletters, etc.) have been struggling for several years. Printing costs and shipping costs continually increase, readership drops off and the end result is unprofitability. Many have shut down. My wife, an avid reader, downloads 95% of her books via Kindle.
The availability of on-line information via web sites, chat groups, blogs and the very successful Model Railroad Hobbyist "e-zine" are a few examples of how information presentation has morphed in the past few years. Some flavors of today's cell phones have replaced laptops. I'm a 100% supporter of on-line media, including the handful of modeling mags published irregularly by several historical societies, because they're fast, current, don't take up shelf space, and offer highly detailed articles (120+ pages per publication is common). None of these can be addressed via paper media, especially "current" or lengthy articles. While I still enjoy sitting down to read the latest MR and flip thru the pages several times if an article catches my eye, the reality is that to grow any venture, the supplier must cater to ever-changing technology in order to reach potential young recruits to any hobby, not just model railroading. Any flavor of "social media" seems to be the way to achieve this. Jim King President, Smoky Mountain Model Works, Inc. Ph. (828) 777-5619 www.smokymountainmodelworks.com Trainmaster, Craggy Mountain Line RR www.craggymountainline.com
