Web Chat: Newspapers get easy circulation on the Web

As newspaper circulation declines nationwide, some readers wonder where they will get their news in the future.

Certainly it will not be from television. And of course it won't be from radio. That pretty much leaves the Internet.

Although television and radio conglomerates are racing to dominate the Web with their versions of "news," newspapers have a jump on them because they know what it is like to put out a quality product on short order.

Here are some of the big players.

www.chicagotribune.com: One of the world's premier newspapers, it has one of the world's premier Internet news sites.

The Chicago Tribune has for decades set the standard for community news, uncovering city scandals and providing readers insight into their community.

The Internet version does almost the same thing.

With links to the many local and regional news and sports stories packaged with some of the greatest editorial writers in the business, the site may be one of those models for how future sites should look and feel when the inevitable digital revolution replaces paper with as-yet unknown media.

www.nytimes.com: A good looking site that seems like a good-looking newspaper.

"The paper of record" established itself early as a powerhouse in the online world. When newspaper operators figure out a way to make money off the Web (as is only done by a few, including the Wall Street Journal), I'm sure The New York Times will be the "Internet site of record."

Besides getting the best Washington perspective for recent political ups and downs, the Times staff has access to information that is not readily available to other reporters. Some of the important stories search for the Times where, for other papers, it is the other way around.

The only downside is that the Times sometimes approaches the news reporting craft with the pretensions of their enormous industry influence. Some news stories will read like novels and others will rely heavily on reader background, but these are the reporters that we are supposed to trust the most, and they are darn good.

Check The New York Times online for the best in arts and culture.

www.washingtonpost.com: The first thing the user sees when logging on is a sideshow of catchy front-page art that correlates with the lead story. This is something not easily found on other sites.

"On Politics" is an interesting section that tracks the latest developments in legislation and political races for nearly all areas of the country. With commentary and opinion, The Washington Post views itself as the leader in politics and it would be ... if it weren't for the New York Times.

Log on to see the latest and leave it on your screen. Every so often, the image will refresh and new developments will be revealed.

www.latimes.com: For the best in the West (besides the Nevada Appeal, which is located at tahoe.com, of course), take a look at The Los Angeles Times. The Times concentrates on states up and down the coast, and even breaks out a little feature from our neck of the woods from time to time. A reporter to cover Nevada (mostly Las Vegas) was recently added to the Times staff.

If you hail from Southern California, even if you don't want to admit it to your neighbors, the Times' group of 30 community papers throughout Orange and Los Angeles counties probably have your old neighborhood covered.

Check out the sports section for some of the best photography in newspapers today.