San Francisco Peninsula Press Club: Examiner cuts back delivery to 2 days a week

The Examiner announced today that it will only deliver papers to homes and businesses two days a week — Thursdays and Sundays — starting July 13.

The free tabloid, owned by Denver billionaire oilman Phil Anschutz, says it is increasing the number of papers available at newspaper racks and vendors while ending six-day-a-week home delivery. It also is moving its weekend Saturday edition to Sunday.

The Examiner also says it will beef up its Web site and turn examiner.com into an aggregator of news.

The Examiner's sister papers in Baltimore and Washington, D.C., are making similiar cuts, the AP reports.

The move follows complaints by residents in all three markets that they have been unable to stop delivery of the Examiner despite repeated calls to the paper. That has prompted legislation in Maryland and San Francisco. The Maryland bill was withdrawn after the Examiner promised to do a better job responding to calls to stop the paper. In San Francisco, an ordinance to fine publishers who deliver after a stop request is being drafted by Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi. Fines would range from $100 to $500 per violation.

According to AP, Examiner CEO Ryan McKibben said the moves are in response to advertiser and reader wishes while allowing the company to "protect the core of what we do and that is gathering news and information."

"It's no secret that this is a very difficult period for our industry. But it's actually an exciting time when one has the necessary talent and is sufficiently nimble and innovative to effectively meet the demands of rapidly changing markets," McKibben said in a statement.