Fort Worth Star Telegram Cancels Volunteer Needs Column

I received what can only be called a very disturbing e-mail this morning from a friend of mine who works in the non-profit sector in North Texas. The Fort Worth Star Telegram has for years donated space in its paper to make people aware of local non-profit agencies that are in need of volunteers. This has been of tremendous benefit in matching people looking for a place to serve with agencies that need their help. Now, following a recent change in ownership, the Star Telegram has dropped the Volunteer Needs column from its print edition, while saying it will continue to be available through the paper's online editions.

A few things leap immediately to mind. The first is the hypocrisy of the newspaper industry that this move exposes. For years we have heard newspapers lament declining readership and lost advertising revenue. A common defense of their continued existence is that they provide a valuable service to the local community not found anywhere else. This action, which was taken without even notifying the agencies that would be affected, shows that their concern for the community is nothing more than lip service.

The Star Telegram would likely answer that they are still running the column in their online edition. All this proves is that they know neither their own readers nor the demographic that is most likely to volunteer. The group that is most likely to respond to needs for volunteers are retirees, who have both the time to donate their service and the mindset of a generation that learned to think about others' needs as well as their own. For the most part, they are not as comfortable using computers, and (often rightly) are wary of the Internet. However, they will sit down every morning and read the newspaper from front to back, including the ads. The point is that the group most likely to volunteer is least likely to find those who need volunteers through an online column.