'Mild Sexual Content or Nudity'

'Mild Profanity', 'Suggestive Themes' and 'Crude Humour' aren't the phrases I would usually associate with the Irish Times. It's a well written, high-brow paper, which is enduring some tough times at present, as all news publications are.

The Irish Times has a new addition to it's online offering, an App (or 'application) for the iPhone, which I think is a very good thing. I'm reserving my judgement on the App itself just yet; but getting to read Irish Times content while commuting is great and the cost is very reasonable (€1.59)

The paper isn't the only one to offer an App: The Guardian are the market leader (at least as far as I'm concerned) and do a great job, with customised content and a lot of variety. You can check out the FAQ for their App here and a video on it here.

Getting back to the Irish Times, the good people at Apple have decided to rate the Irish Times 12+ for amongst other things, 'Mild Horror', 'Fear Themes' and 'Mild Sexual Content or Nudity'.

Is there something we should know? Has the paper fallen on such tough times that they're going 'adult' to make ends meet? Answers on a digital postcard to the usual address.

(Click on the picture below for a screen cap of the page in question.)

Final Edition

I've posted an interesting video below, a short piece documenting the final days of the Rocky Mountain News, a fine newspaper that existed for 149 years, 311 days before closing it's doors on February 27th 2009.

To give a local perspective, the paper was founded just 24 days after our own Irish Times was and was one of the top 'quality papers' in the States, winning 4 Pulitzer prizes under the leadership of it's final editor alone.

Despite this, despite good circulation numbers and despite being one of the best loved papers in the US, it no longer exists.

Did the web kill the Rocky Mountain News? Probably not. But woeful mismanagement of the paper and it's web presence, a newspaper war with The Denver Post and lack of any clear leadership all contributed to the death of an institution.

But more on that later. For now, check out the video below. If you have any interest in news and newspapers you'll find it heartbraking.

Final Edition from Matthew Roberts on Vimeo.