Team-BHP - Do you still get newspapers delivered at home?

I stopped getting newspaper about 7-10 years ago.
So what is my news source?

It depends on why I would want to accumulate all the information of this world.
To be frank, living without organized news (no paper, magazine, news channels, internet etc) has not really handicapped my existence.

But going through this thread is kind of igniting a flame in me to start newspaper subscription once again (while they last).

I am not really surprised that in spite of an alleged deterioration of ideals, The Hindu remains a favorite among the responding Bhpians! Could it be deduced that the quality of posts on our forum has had at least a minor influence of this readership experience?

On an unrelated note, I can't even dare to imagine our homes without newspapers. What will replace them on the shelves of our wardrobes and kitchens? What will the neighborhood grocer wrap the red chillies in? What magical container will we eat our churmuri and dry bhel from? What, for instance, will the roadside pakora seller use to parcel the vadas and bhajjis?

Ergo, as responsible citizens of a jugaad friendly and food loving nation, it is imperative for us (and in the fitness of things too) to never stop subscribing to newspapers.

After all, if there ever was a multitasker in our homes, it is this, this and this alone.

A regular reader of The Hindu for the past couple of decades, and am kind of sad at the state of affairs but they have to change to survive in this digital age. Maybe a little late to the online party, but they have started a new service called Briefcase lately, even though I haven't checked it out. Needless to say, I am in no way linked to The Hindu except being a subscriber.

Actually, I still get and read a newspaper at home and at the office.

Whenever we lived abroad we also subscribed to at least one local newspaper. So in Delhi we had the Times of India. In Kansas City we had the Kansas City Star and in Brighton we had, cant remember too long ago, but it was some Sussex Regional paper I seem to recall. When we are in Barbados with my wife's family I read the Nation or the Advocate.

At the office I tend to read the Financial Times.

I have found that local papers tend to give you more insights on what to do locally, what to see, more local politics, local adds etc. Quicker than the internet.

Also, as others pointed out, it is somewhat of a ritual. I get up, make coffee, read my newspaper before I do anything else.

Here in the Netherlands I have a different paper on Saturday from the rest of the week. The Saturday one is a bit of a rag. But that is ok, I dont want to read anything complicated and difficult during my weekend. Only relaxation. As part of my subscription I can also get all these papers digitally on my iPad. Never bother with that. I dont like reading news papers in digital format.

I also never read old papers. So this week I'm travelling. Left Monday late morning. I will arrive back home Friday afternoon. There will be four unread papers, but I will just throw them out and the first paper I will read will be the Saturday one.

Anorak fact: For several years from when I was about 13 till 16 years of age, I used to do a paper round to earn pocket money for my hobbies (Airfix models and model trains). Delivering some 250 news papers before 07.00am six days a week.

Jeroen

Most certainly still get papers delivered at home and likely to continue that way for the foreseeable future. For me, it is a daily morning ritual, wherever I may be, whether at home, traveling for leisure or on business, to read the paper or at least glance through the main news if Im short on time. I enjoy this ritual today as I have been over the last couple of decades.

Electronic newspapers do nothing for me, and there is no allure to relegating traditional newsprint to an iPad or smartphone screen.

YES. Can't do without the daily newspaper - has been a habit from childhood and something that I relish.

At Kerala, we subscribe to The Hindu (the best English paper IMO) and the Malayala Manorama. I briefly toyed with rags like the Deccan Chronicle and ToI, but quit given the cuseless gossip, shoddy editing, spelling/grammatical mistakes etc.

Yes, I subscribe to Mathrubhumi (a Malayalam daily) and read it every day. A leisurely morning tea with newspaper is a part of my morning ritual and it helps me keep in touch with a lot of local news - about what is happening in Kerala.

Otherwise, for national and international news, I depend on the digital medium.

Another paper I buy is the ET, after every budget.

--Anoop

I do get paper delivered. Both English and Tamil Hindu. The news reporting and editorials I see are on the decline. Nowhere close to what was during my school days. I am thinking of switching to a different news paper once my subscription ends in October. But I will continue to get. There is nothing like replacing a physical paper though you get news through smart phones and TVs. There is also an added advantage of imparting reading habit to my kid by showing him pictures and invoking interest.

I used to buy TOI to continue my new paper reading habit which cultivated by my dad when I am in primary school. Though I always wanted to read The Hindu, our local newspaper guy was not distributing The Hindu in our area. So stuck to TOI and Pune Mirror. But now no option but to stop buying a newspaper.

I think in future the print media will switch to an online-only model soon. The problem with Hindu is they are dependant on print media (as far as I know). But their competitors have diversified to all other segments like Times Of India Group, HT Media so on.

Yes, and its a habit that is difficult to shake off easily . Newspaper with the morning coffee.

But nowadays, its almost like reading the newspaper a day later, since you have pretty much touched all news over the internet already! But I still like the rustle of paper and smell of coffee together...

Also - I think my reading time has reduced considerably - mostly headlines and some key news items - rarely go through the detailed text unless something is really interesting.

in any case it works out to only less than 300 Rs a month..

I prefer newspaper over TV news channels as well as internet. I can read at my own pace, take breaks when I need to attend to something and discuss news items with other family members to seek their response by sharing news with them.

It is still a very lovely experience as against electronic media; though a large number of advertisements have started spoiling the overall experience, but I can't do anything about it.

Our country is privileged with respect to variety of available print media. I remember having read that close to about 1,00,000 publishing houses are registered with Registrar of Newspapers. More so due to significant Government subsidy, the cost to the end user is very low to reasonable. It was difficult for me to buy a newspaper in Europe and I use to read it in my university. Over the weekend also, I use to buy a copy may be once or twice in a month.

Yes.

I must admit that I can't do without a daily dose of newspaper (English and regional) especially in mornings. While digital transformation has drastically changed our lives and habits, this is one thing I'm still hooked to. While the quality of news and details have certainly nose-dived, reading newspaper still gives the pleasure of 'reading' (like kindle vs book).

Also, I agree with GJ01 that for regional news, newspaper still has got an edge in terms of detailed coverage though the gap is quickly closing.

The future of newspaper indeed remains bleak until somebody somewhere thinks of radically disruptive innovation to revive the interest.

Yes.

My day starts with a hot cup of Coffee and "The Hindu". There are days when you don't have "The Hindu" like next day after Diwali, Pongal etc and I feel something is missing. I'm bit partial towards "The Hindu" for its contents.

I feel that you get a better insight into the local news in the News paper than in Internet.

On Sundays I used to subscribe to "Mathrubhumi" (Mayalayalam daily).
While on travel I try to get the local news paper.