Business Is Business

In their heyday in the '305, Ed and Jim Scripps had eleven links in their Western newspaper chain. By 1947, when the Scripps-owned Seattle Star folded up, only four links were left in the Scripps League. Last week, death came to the Tacoma (Wash.) Times, and there were only three.

The Times muffed its last real chance when the Scripps brothers let Editor Bill Townes quit because they were unwilling to back up his robust, crusading news policy (TIME, March 15, 1948). It was the same policy that E. W. ("Lusty") Scripps, grandfather of Ed and Jim, had used to build his chains. Townes had boosted circulation to 47,077; by last week it had slumped back to 40,500, and local advertisers were throwing their busi ness to the rival News-Tribune, the city's only other daily (circ. 62,500).

With production costs rising, the Scripps brothers decided to call it quits.

Said Editor Paul T. Busselle, who joined the Times 20 years ago and succeeded Townes: "I guess people are right when they laugh at me for calling it the 'news paper game.' It isn't a game any more, it's too much of a business."

*The others: The Provo (Utah) Herald; the Logan (Utah) Herald-Journal; the Coeur d'Alene (Idaho) Press.

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