'Rochester Democrat and Chronicle' Partners with RIT

By: E&P Staff The Printing Industry Center at Rochester Institute of Technology has announced the addition of the Democrat and Chronicle as an industry partner. The Gannett daily in Rochester, N.Y., joins 12 other companies and associations pledging support to the center's operation.

Supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the center (a joint program of the institute's School of Print Media and its E. Philip Saunders College of Business) is dedicated to the growth and profitability of the printing industry, addressing industry concerns through research initiatives and educational outreach programs.

"The issues impacting the news publishing industry are top of mind at RIT in both our research and teaching," Frank Cost, associate dean of RIT's College of Imaging Arts and Sciences and co-director of the Printing Industry Center, said in announcing the partnership.

"This partnership will help us identify and better understand emerging trends and help our multimedia company adapt to those trends," Democrat and Chronicle Operations Vice President Brian Ambor said in a statement, adding that it "provides us time for important dialogue with other business partners from an idea, information exchange and relationship-building standpoint."

RIT said its School of Print Media its news media program's curriculum has been altered to focus on "strengthening its strategic and curriculum partnerships with such entities as the Democrat and Chronicle, Chicago Tribune and Scripps Howard Foundation."

"The printed newspaper will be around for a long time, however, its format will continue to change to reduce costs and maintain/increase circulation among the core audience," Twyla Cummings, Paul and Louise Miller Distinguished Professor at the School of Print Media said. "The goal of producing a digital newspaper where subscribers can customize their content may become a reality. To reflect these trends, our curriculum has shifted from a production-oriented one to a focus on the multi-media aspect of news content."

Other partners are Adobe Systems, Avery Dennison, Eastman Kodak, Heidelberg, Hewlett-Packard, NewPage, NPES, Scripps Howard Foundation, Standard Register, VIGC, U.S. Government Printing Office and Xerox.