[I wrote this email to the New York Times at my parents' kitchen table yesterday morning. My old man suggested I post it to my "blog".]
To Whom It May Concern:
Please help me understand why I just paid $4.50 for an advertising circular periodically interrupted by news.
I am looking at the Sunday, 26 November 2006 Early Edition of the New York Times, purchased at Wegmans Supermarket in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.
Here is a page-by-page rundown of the A Section:
Page 1: All News (good job)
Page 2: 2/3 advertising
Page 3: 1/2 advertising
Page 4: 1/2 advertising
Page 5: Full-page ad
Page 6: Full-page ad
Page 7: Full-page ad
Page 8: Half-page ad
Page 9: Full-page ad
Page 10: Full-page ad
Page 11: Full-page ad
Page 12: Full-page ad
Page 13: 5/6th-page ad
Page 14: Quarter-page ad (good)
Page 15: Full-page ad
Page 16: Full-page ad
Page 17: Full-page ad
Page 18: Full-page ad
Page 19: Full-page ad
Page 20: Half-page ad
Page 21: Full-page ad
Page 22: Full-page ad
Page 23: Full-page ad
Page 24: All news!
Page 25: Full-page ad
Page 26: Quarter-page ad (good)
Page 27: Full-page ad
Page 28: Half-page ad
Page 29: Full-page ad
Page 30: 1/3 advertising
Page 31: Full-page ad
Page 32: 3/4 advertising
Page 33: 35% advertising
Page 34: Full page ad (Advertising Week 2006!)
Page 35: 5/12 advertising
Page 36: Full-page ad
How do I go about getting a refund?
Sincerely,
David Eisner
University Park, MD
sounds like you are ready for this little movie called Manufacturing Consent: http://imdb.com/title/tt0104810/
There's a great scene where the NYT is taken apart in a gym, the first side of the gym has all the articles cut out and laid out, the other side has all the ads cut out and laid out.
And the advertising is about 10 times as long as the articles.
It's pretty sick that they charge for it. I hope you really sent the letter/email.
Cheers
I really did!
Posted by: David at November 28, 2006 9:47 AM