Cutthroat newspaper competition is on the wane in most U.S. cities, but not in Boston. The big daily papers, the Globe, the Herald Traveler, and the Record American, are not scrapping. But two small weeklies that feature radical politics, rock-music and movie reviews, plus gamy classified ads, are presently engaged in a fierceĀand profitableĀbattle for readers and revenues. Moreover, their hard-digging reporting is beginning to stir up the downtown dailies as well.
Until recently, Boston After Dark was little more than a modest entertainment guide with a giveaway circulation of about 30,000. Its...