2011.01.02
Sunday comics a little smaller
Beginning today, our Sunday comics section will be published as four pages instead of six to save newsprint costs.
All but one of our Sunday comics – Prince Valiant – will continue to run slightly condensed in the four-page section. We also are discontinuing the childrens’ puzzles that run on the back of Sunday comics.
We based our decision to drop Prince Valiant on our 2009 readers’ poll. At that time, comics readers ranked Prince Valiant second-to-last of our strips – behind only Gil Thorpe, which we’ve since discontinued in favor of Pearls Before Swine.
Please post feedback here, send it to editor@roanoke.com or call our reader comment line, 981-3173.
No problem with that, just don’t use those annoying 1/2 pages.
Comment by Snoopy — January 2, 2011 @ 10:34 am
My wife and I used to have a little contest on Sunday mornings; figuring out the answer to the Slylock Fox puzzle and then being the quickest in identifying the six differences in the drawings. Sunday AMs will be a little more dull now…
Comment by Steve — January 2, 2011 @ 12:23 pm
Agreed on the fold-over advertisements that cover part of the front page of the comics. Those are a bane.Just another case of print media failing to understand why they’re continually losing business.
Comment by abdnva — January 2, 2011 @ 3:17 pm
Argh! I guess I was one of the only readers out there who still followed Valiant.
Comment by Holly Moore — January 2, 2011 @ 9:28 pm
my kids will be disappointed they loved the kids section at the end
Comment by Christy — January 3, 2011 @ 10:04 am
I actually often found interesting trivia in the children’s section & used the section to enhance literacy teaching sessions. Too bad education & entertainment can’t mix.
Comment by KHewz — January 3, 2011 @ 11:28 am
My dad and I will sorely miss Prince Valiant.
Peanuts was a good strip in it’s day but that is one that needs to be cut loose now. It’s not like any new strips will be coming along.
And my son was at the age where he was starting to look over that back page of activities so I know he will miss that, too.
I understand cuts have to be made, but just supplying feedback.
Comment by Dylan — January 3, 2011 @ 12:44 pm
Deepsix “Pearls before swine” and “Get fuzzy”
Comment by Fletch — January 3, 2011 @ 3:45 pm
I will miss the kids puzzles on the back. Sadly it was one of the few reasons I still subscribe.
Comment by Easy E — January 3, 2011 @ 4:28 pm
I quit reading the comics when they got rid of Andy Capp.Now they are getting rid of Valiant and condensing others..how do you “condense” a comic strip.If you needed money that bad,just dump Casey or Radmacher…
Comment by Jack Mcguire — January 4, 2011 @ 4:47 pm
I think that you’re losing your next generation of newspaper readers already. In my opinion, your just adding nails to the coffin by getting rid of the kids section. Short term savings, long term loss. My 4 & 6 year old children were just starting to enjoy it. But, as others said, at least your getting rid of that awful 1/2 page advertisement.
Comment by Kristina — January 16, 2011 @ 4:49 pm