Whither the American newspaper, as asked from L.A.?

The Times, wallowing under a mix of Tribune Co. bureaucracy and it’s own over-inflated self-opinion (how can you let yourself be called a national newspaper and not have a daily edition in D.C.?, and gee, doesn’t that sound like The Dallas Morning News/A.H. Belo?) figures the best way to answer the headliner tease is to assign some of its investigative reporters to look at itself.

But, as Tom Rosenstiel points out, the answer’s already been provided by similar exercises at other newspapers: More online focus.

The seven-day daily has never been the same since the AP, Reuters and AFP began providing free online content. And that genie will never be put back in the bottle.

Unfortunately, it has some fallout effect on us at suburban weeklies, slowing or stunting our own market penetration, though for the medium haul, we’re better positioned than they are. As for the long haul, that’s anybody’s guess.