Printing a bigger newspaper?

The Baltimore Sun Media Group today announced that it will be printing the daily edition of the Washington Times. Cha-ching.

This is great news.

Though, I have to admit, I was a little bummed when I read the press release announcing the deal. A WT official said the deal would allow them to print a bigger newspaper, with SIX sections instead of four. Wouldn't that mean that we're printing a bigger newspaper for a Washington paper than the one we publish ourselves?

I hope this makes money for BSMG. It's a move that reminded me of what Sam Zell said he would push the Trib newspapers to focus on, which is squeezing the most out of its facilities.

This is a good thing 'cuz our facilities need to work smarter, not harder. :-)

For a blast from the past, check out the video of Sam Zell talking about facilities management at The Sun, from back in March.



And here's today's press release on the BSMG-Washington Times printing agreement:

THE BALTIMORE SUN MEDIA GROUP AND THE WASHINGTON TIMES ANNOUNCE PRINTING AGREEMENT

Washington Times decision to outsource adds to Baltimore Sun Media Group's
significant commercial printing operation


BALTIMORE, August 6, 2008 — The Baltimore Sun Media Group (BSMG) and The Washington Times LLC announced today that effective September 8, The Washington Times will outsource the printing of its daily newspaper to the Sun Park facility in Baltimore.

Executives of BSMG and The Washington Times developed the agreement in the spirit of cooperation within the newspaper industry.

"There are many advantages to being printed by the Sun," said Dick Amberg, associate publisher and general manager of The Washington Times. "The expanded capabilities of their modern presses allow us to print six sections instead of four, to print many more pages, to have more color pages, to print more quickly, and to have better inserting. We are pleased to expand our relationship with the Baltimore Sun Media Group."

BSMG also delivers The Washington Times in the Baltimore distribution area, an arrangement which will continue, and BSMG will meet all current delivery deadlines. In 2001, BSMG began distributing papers to retail outlets for single copy sales of The Washington Times in the Baltimore area, and has provided quality service to home delivery customers in that market since 2004.

"We are excited to provide printing services to The Washington Times," said Stephen G. Seidl, senior vice president, operations and technology, BSMG. "Capitalizing on our significant printing and distribution operation, while maintaining a high level of service to all of our clients, is an important part of our strategy."

The Baltimore Sun Media Group has over 50 commercial printing arrangements through both The Sun and its Community Newspaper Group. Customers include the New York Post and New York Daily News. The company also has local distribution agreements with more than 20 publications. In addition to The Washington Times, the company delivers 700,000 home delivery and 400,000 single copy publications each month for clients including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, Financial Times and Investor's Business Daily.

The Washington Times is embarked on an aggressive path of growth that in the past three months has included the launch of a new WashingtonTimes.com web site, ongoing incorporation of multimedia features to meet viewer demand, a redesigned local print edition and national weekly edition, and the prior engagement of Landor Associates, one of the world's leading strategic branding firms to help position the company in the digital age.

About The Baltimore Sun Media Group
The Baltimore Sun Media Group, a Tribune company, publishes The Sun, baltimoresun.com, 30 community newspapers and magazines, and a growing portfolio of targeted print and online products, including b and bthesite.com. In print and online, the Baltimore Sun Media Group reaches 1.2 million readers each week in the Baltimore area, making it the region's most widely read source of news and information.
About The Washington Times

The Washington Times LLC is a multimedia company in the nation's capital that publishes The Washington Times, a full-service, general interest daily newspaper and other media products. Founded in 1982, The Washington Times is one of the most-often-quoted newspapers in the U.S. with a reputation for hard-hitting investigative reporting and thorough coverage of politics, policy and culture. The Washingtontimes.com web site includes all of the original content from the daily printed newspaper plus original content produced for online users in print, audio, visual and interactive formats.