The News and Record: 200 Market Street

The News and Record is Greensboro's daily newspaper. Can you believe, this is a street view of the main entrance? Their building, on 200 Market Street, is a city-block long with offices on the Market Street side and the daily distribution and truck dispatch area along Davie Street. Heralding one's arrival at the public entrance to the boxy, "no frills" News and Record building is the above array of newspaper boxes. This visual marker, the only thing colorful on the block,  is seen long before one finds the modest signage confirming the building's occupant. 

We are dating ourselves by admitting that around our house, receiving the News and Record is a ritual, anticipated and appreciated daily. On our street, we expect the paper to be delivered by 6am. When it is not, as was the rare case recently, we panic! "How will we drink our coffee without newspaper? How can we start our day? What if there is something about our community that we need to know? What if there is a breaking story about our workplace?"  In recent years, the paper has changed-- dramatically. Bending to retrieve the skinny, skinny, diminutive Monday and Tuesday editions, we wonder how much longer we will be able to indulge in this daily pleasure. By Wednesday, ads start fattening up the News and Record and Thursday's edition is a paper of substance as it contains "Go Triad." The Friday edition is respectable; Saturday is paultry. The Sunday edition is the highlight of the week: Adds, circulars, Parade magazine, news, comics, puzzles, the Life section, a community pull-out; on Sunday-- truly a something-for-everybody event. Anna Quindlen wrote a book, "How Reading Changed My Life." Someone should write a book, "How Newspapers Connect Us to Our Community." 

Regarding the newspaper boxes in the photo above, the artist in us wants to use a can of white spray paint and a giant stencil set to add one massive letter per box. N-E-W-S-A-N-D-R-E-C-O-R-D. Now that would be some creative, low-cost advertising! Finally, we wonder what the local paper will look like a year from now? Five years from now?

Comments

[Linda]

Someone with good visual sense arranged these boxes!
Yes, local papers are precious, aren't they?

[John Robinson]

The boxes are on public property and the N&R doesn't have any say over them, except for the two that are ours.

That said, we are going to be here for a long time. The recession is slowing us, as it is every business, but it will pass and we'll get through it.

Thanks for reading.

[Jane Mitchell]

I, too, am a long time reader of the News and Record with my morning coffee. When friends complained and dropped their subscriptions, I came back at them with the fact that the N.Y Times nor the Wall Street Journal could tell me what was playing at the local cinemas, review the local concerts and plays, inform me of local & state affairs or provide me with the civic pride I feel in reading my hometown newspaper. Vive the News and Record! JTM

[Léia]

wowwwww is it real?
Wonderful shot !
Léia

[Hilda]

That is so colorful and cute!

We don't have newspaper boxes because ours are still sold the old way — by people holding them out on the streets to drivers or in boxes on the sidewalks for pedestrians.

[Marc]

Great colorful shot. And interesting thoughts about local papers. They're certainly important for local communities.

[cieldequimper]

Wonderful shot, you've shown me something that I love when walking American streets. I've never yet seen such a great colourful line to photograph!

[Ampersand Seven]

I love the way the 200 looms over the little newspaper boxes like a tall, skinny Helvetica drill sergeant.

[Mojo, NC, USA]

I wonder if there will be any local papers 5 years form now. At least in the form of actual papers. Print media is going the way of the dodo it seems.

[Jilly]

Janis, thanks so much for sending me the message about this. Love the shot! We don't have these in France so if that theme is chosen I'd have to get my thinking cap on. Love the photo as i said.