While the message on the World News site is irreverant in tone, it highlights the very clearly the problem that many publishers on the internet face -- that it just does not pay its way.
American Media, which also owns the Star, Globe, Sun and National Examiner, issued online readers with an ultimatum -- buy the newspaper or else the site will stay closed for good.
A statement on the homepage from the title's publisher said: "We would like you to buy the paper at least one stinking week out of the year. That's right, buy it. Go to Wal-Mart, Kmart, your local supermarket and plunk down a couple of lousy bucks for a copy."
The message concludes: "We want to see who our true fans are. We want to know who loves us. We want to keep our jobs."
This is followed by a letter from editor, jokingly named Ed Angry. In it, he urges readers to take money from a sleeping roommate or sell their VCRs in order to pay for the copy.
The publishing sector has long been concerned that newspapers sales could be affected if they put the newspaper's content on the web in full. This has led the Telegraph and Scottish business website business a.m. to begin charging for content. The Times charges for the online version of its crosswork, its fantasy league tables and its archive search engine.
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