Off Off Wall Street

Last word from Punch Sulzberger

From the end of the obit for Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, our paper’s longtime publisher and chairman:

When he left as Times chairman in 1997, he remained convinced that newspapers — at least good newspapers — had a bright future.

“I think that paper and ink are here to stay for the kind of newspapers we print,” he said in a postretirement interview. “There’s no shortage of news in this world. If you want news, you can go to cyberspace and grab out all this junk. But I don’t think most people are competent to become editors, or have the time or the interest.”

“You’re not buying news when you buy The New York Times,” Mr. Sulzberger said. “You’re buying judgment.”

May he ever be right.