Recession rocks Hollywood’s showbiz papers

For more than 75 years, Daily Variety and The Hollywood Reporter have battled to be the movie industry’s top newspaper, but recent layoffs due to the recession and competition from Internet blogs has Hollywood wondering if it will soon become a one paper town.

Publishers of the showbusiness newspapers say advertising has plunged, even during the current Oscar season when movie studios pay well to hype their films with cover page ads.

Moreover, the papers face increased competition from bloggers providing a daily diet of Hollywood news and gossip, such as Nikki Finke’s DeadlineHollywoodDaily.com, Tina Brown’s TheDailyBeast.com and David Poland’s MovieCityNews.com.

Daily Variety and The Hollywood Reporter continue to compete vigorously through tough economic times.

Reuters