The Fishing News Ceases Publication (editors
note... we're sorry to see ya go!!)
Effective immediately, Marble Publishing Inc. in Toronto has
stopped production of Canada’s national fishing newspaper, The Fishing News.
The Fishing News was entering its third year of publishing and
despite substantial growth over its first two years, analysis of the 2001 and 2002
forecast showed less-than-anticipated advertising support.
"Until the publishing environment improves in the industry,
we cannot produce a national newspaper every two months," said James Pugsley,
President of Marble Publishing. "The news is not something you can just publish once
or twice a year, so our choices were limited to all or nothing."
Since October of 1998 there have been 16 issues of the paper
(eight issues in 1999, six issues in 2000 and one issue in both 1998 and January, 2001.)
Over that period, the paper had developed an impressive editorial staff, an informative
Web site, and a growing readership from coast to coast.
"We are proud of the goals we accomplished and the
tremendous work that was done by writers, photographers, artists and editors across the
country," said Pugsley, who was the creator of the publication and the
editor-in-chief for 15 issues.
In November of 1999, Marble signed a landmark distribution
agreement with Canadian Tire that placed the paper in the fishing section of 250 stores,
and established a solid connection to a national retail giant. The move brought a
increased readership and sparked immediate growth in ad sales, which translated into a
profitable year for the paper in 2000. However, management declared in 1999 that without
continued positive outlook for 2001, the paper would be put on hold indefinitely, which is
what has happened.
"This product was developed to fill an editorial void at a
national level, and provide the industry with a worthwhile alternative for advertising
every two months," said Pugsley. "All of our editorial, Internet and
distribution objectives were met, but the advertising forecast didn’t show enough
optimism."
Pugsley said the company chose to shut the newspaper down in
January to allow its scheduled advertisers enough time to book their ads elsewhere, and to
avoid misleading potential subscribers at outdoor shows this spring.
"We felt The Fishing News was a valuable information tool
for Canadian anglers and a useful political tool as well. It’s unfortunate that this
shutdown had to happen."
The Fishing News Web site ( www.thefishingnews.com
)will continue with existing content and the features developed exclusivley for the web,
Ask A Pro, Bulletin Boards, Fishing Today, and several other sections of the site will not
be effected in any way. |
