As a child, I used to anxiously await my father's return from work so I could grab the Philadelphia Bulletin he carried under his arm each evening.

OK, I only wanted to read the comics before my sisters, but that daily ritual established in me a life-long love of newspapers. Now I have kids of my own, and while they too read the comics in the Philadelphia Inquirer, I can tell they don't feel the same way about unfolding a newspaper each morning. They get their news online—just like millions of young people in the country.

No wonder the future of newspapers, as we've known them, is so bleak. It is hard to envision a reversal of the demographic, technological, economic, and environmental trends that are rapidly making newspapers obsolete.

I won't say that's a shame, because who knows if it's a shame or not? It certainly is different, and it certainly is difficult for those newspaper publishers and employees who are caught in this transitional period. Our society needs a vigorous news media more than ever, and advertisers still need newspaper pages to deliver their messages. What our society apparently does not need is actual paper. The latest evidence: the Christian Science Monitor's recent announcement that, after 100 years, it will cease its paper edition and move completely on-line in 2009.

How long, then, before a major, urban daily newspaper takes the same step?

The seeds are already planted. Most major dailies have ceased printing stock listings—although all those numbers are available on their web sites. Newspapers' web sites routinely scoop their print additions. You can read the New York Times Sunday Magazine cover story on the Thursday before.

How much longer before a publishing company realizes it could eliminate fleets of delivery trucks, printing presses, tons of paper and barrels of ink? What newspapers today really need is a team of great journalists and editors, great photographers, and a big enough server farm.

We see several important implications for businesses and organizations that rely upon newspaper print advertising or media coverage. With the decline of the daily newspaper, businesses and organizations must:

• broaden their advertising media mix to include a wide range of channels—outdoor, direct mail, radio, network and cable television, and, of course, the Internet.
• Make sure your own web site provides a robust environment for your customers to interact with your institution.
• Work to develop relationships with customers and potential customers and do everything you can to build a database of e-mail addresses. Who needs a newspaper when you can e-mail a story or video to thousands of customers or clients? Barack Obama won the presidency, in part, using this tactic.

It seems unlikely that printed news will disappear completely, but years of turmoil probably remain ahead as publishers and advertisers figure out the new economics. The only certainty is that organizations and businesses seeking to get their messages out to the public will need to be creative, flexible, and willing to look beyond traditional outlets for both media coverage and advertising.