• Newspapers & Technology, Friday, March 31, 2006 11 AM

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.  That appears to be the thinking of more and more newspaper executives, some of whom are willingly--even eagerly--embracing features and products that are made possible through the magic of the World Wide Web.  The latest to catch on is YourHub.com, a grassroots site that has produced a print companion which a number of U.S. newspapers are folding into their regular editions. Since a Denver outfit began syndicating the material early this year, YourHub.com has signed up more than a dozen newspapers.  Jack Lail, managing editor for multimedia at The News-Sentinel in Knoxville, Tenn., says YourHub.com has yielded positive results since the newspaper launched the service last year. “We have had 2,715 stories posted, 1,305 events posted and 112 blog entries," he says, adding that the newspaper has more than 1,000 registered Web site users and averages more than 60,000 page views each month.  The print edition of YourHub, which carries a uniform design from city to city, is pulled entirely from content that has been posted online. Its likeliest readers are those who don't use the Internet very much; however, the possible downside is that it will drive readers to the Web, away from print.  But at this point, that's a risk most newspaper executives seem willing to take.

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