'S.I. Advance' Drops TV Book -- Gets 1,500 Complaints

By: Joe Strupp The Staten Island (N.Y.) Advance has received more than 1,500 reader complaints since it dropped its TV Book on Sunday, according to Editor Brian Laline, who said the weekly tab was eliminated in a cost-cutting move.

But he said the paper is considering bringing back the popular product, which sparked about 400 calls to the newsroom on Sunday alone. "The reaction has been significant, so we may take another look at it," Laline said, noting reaction came both in phone calls and e-mails. "People do seem to like it. When people didn't get it in their Sunday Advance, they were concerned about it."

The 56,875 daily-circulation paper has a Sunday circulation of 69,311. It is owned by Advance Publications.

Noting the rising cost of newsprint and an increase in television listings from other sources, Laline said the paper sought to reduce expenses by dropping the book.

"You are always looking at your paper to see what is discussed," he said about the popularity of such features. "This reaction sent a very strong message that people love the paper."

A 24-page insert, the TV Book included some six-to-eight pages of news content. But by far, the most popular content is the listings themselves, he said.

"We thought it was a less painful way of cutting newsprint," he said of the decision. "I have to sit down with the publisher and the advertising staff and see."

In another cost-cutting move, the Advance offered its first-ever buyouts, Laline said. Seeking some 20 takers, the paper offered two weeks' salary for every year of service to a select few based on age and years at the paper.

Employees are eligible if their age and years at the paper add up to 71, Laline said. He believes at least 37 of the 110 staffers in his newsroom are eligible.

"This is purely voluntary and if we don?t get 20, we don?t get 20," he stressed, adding that semi-annual raises usually given in October were put on hold until the buyouts are decided sometime in November. "We just postponed them."