In Tennessee: Death of an Afternoon

Sadly, this seems to be happening too much now in America: the weaker newspaper in a two-paper town shuts down. Then the stronger announces—before the body is even cold—that it will be expanding. More pages. More personnel (including, charitably, some off the stiff). And, more important, more color.

This does not seem to be going on: "Where are you off to?" "I'm tearing down to the newsstand, sweetie. The paper has a new full-color weather map of the entire country!"

To what newspapers tend to call a "veteran observer"—and a fond one at that—the...

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