There was a time when Sunday mornings were filled by several pots of coffee and reading one or two Sunday edition newspapers. Our papers of choice generally the Providence Journal and the Boston Globe with an occasional venture into the New York Times.

The best days were ones when it was a howling blizzard outside, a raging fire in the fireplace, and no plans for the day.

Recently, I decided to restart the tradition. Beginning with a trial subscription to the Arizona Republic, the paper now magically appears at the end of my driveway each morning. Depending on how the trial goes, I may opt to switch to the Wednesday/Sunday paper delivery and take advantage of the digital access that goes along with any subscription.

But it is getting a newspaper back in my hand that is important.

The first Sunday delivery, while exciting and welcome, did underscore the slow but steady decline of the newspaper in our instant gratification world. Papers used to have heft to them. A Providence Journal, Boston Globe, and New York Times Sunday collection had both gravitas in the writing and in merely lifting them up to bring them inside.

But no more. We live in a world of ADHD where people are only momentarily drawn to the latest shiny object or 144 character blurb before being distracted by the next.

The idea of sitting down and reading a multi-page 3000-5000 word in-depth article is an anathema. Our sad lack of any propinquity for what newspapers did, and still can do, is sad. Just a quick perusal of the online news channels—of which there are few legitimate ones with thousands of fake sites offering nothing but inconsequential gibberish—and the poor writing, grammatical miasma, and transparent bias is enough to cause doubt in the evolution of human intellect.

It was through newspapers that I learned to read. Learned about current events and their historical background, Learned about distant lands and peoples. Read about events in the Halls of Congress, The White House, and the Courts.

For my generation the battle lines reported were in Viet Nam, the threat of communist invasion from East Germany, or the risk from the dark cloud of nuclear winter. Yet we also placed two astronauts on the moon, signed Civil Rights legislation into law, and desegregated schools (or at least made progress forward.) These headlines screamed off the pages. It almost made one part of the adventure. It certainly informed the public.

Newspapers filled the vital role of educating Americans about their country and the world. And they drew a clear separation between what was a factual news story and what was opinion. News stories didn’t characterize the elements of the article with adjectives, critical or otherwise. 

That was the place for Op-Ed pieces.

Such separation today is hard to find. Simply looking at the headlines from two different “news” sources about the same story makes one wonder if they are even covering the same event.

That and every story is breaking news, even if has been reported over and over in the 7X24 news cycle. Like the boy who cried wolf , breaking news has lost it’s urgency and drama.

So I’ve decided to return to my routes. Newspapers played a critical roll is my early education. There are still world-class writers penning articles of deep and well-reported quality. There is still a place, and a critical need, for them in our society.

I’ve also kept my habit of reading the front page, turning the paper over, and reading from back to front. Why I do this I have no idea. It frequently requires me to jump ahead to read the middle parts of a story found in early pages. But old habits die hard and it is part of a habit I am trying to revitalize, thus I shall just let it be.

So, from now on, the phone is off on Sunday mornings. The coffee pot will be refilled as needed. And nothing else will happen until I’ve read the Sunday paper.

And the best part, like a fine dessert after an amazing meal at a Michelin star restaurant, is always the comics. For within the frames of those “funny pages” lies much wisdom.

JEBWizard Publishing (www.jebwizardpublishing.com) is a hybrid publishing company focusing on new and emerging authors. We offer a full range of customized publishing services. Everyone has a story to tell, let us help you share it with the world. We turn publishing dreams into reality.