A sign at the Brandywine Hundred Library on the absence of newspapers. (Ken Mammarella photo)
Some New Castle County libraries have not been getting their print newspapers for a month, and by September, that absence hit all the public libraries that the county runs.
The reason: a distribution company has gone out of business, DelawareLive was told.
“New Castle County Libraries are experiencing significant delays with our newspaper deliveries. We are working with our distributor to resolve the problem,” says a sign at the Brandywine Hundred Library, the busiest in the county. “Thank you for your patience!”
Patrons will have to continue to be patient, because the company that handled the distribution is out of business. That’s according to Paul London, director of regional distribution for Gannett, whose newspapers include The News Journal.
“This bothers me, and I apologize to these individuals,” he said, promising to reach out to the distributor, a company called Distribution Marketing, to get a list of clients affected. “And then we’ll have to contact those facilities.”
Gannett has taken over the distribution of The News Journal, USA Today and other newspapers to convenience stores, but London said he was unaware that Distribution Marketing served libraries.
A voice message to Distribution Marketing was not returned.
Offices’ newspaper subscriptions affected?
Distribution Marketing also apparently served offices with newspaper subscriptions, but London said that Gannett “is not set up to handle office delivery.”
In mid-August, library staff at multiple branches reported that they were not consistently receiving newspapers, said Brian Cunningham, the county’s director of strategic communication.
“Distribution Marketing’s initial response was that they were experiencing a supply issue; they were documenting which newspapers weren’t delivered, and the county would receive the appropriate credits,” he said.
“By September, all of the county’s libraries reported they weren’t receiving their newspaper orders. We confirmed with libraries downstate that they are experiencing similar delivery issues.
“We are looking into alternatives to procuring the newspapers but haven’t found a vendor who meets our needs,” he said.
Even though more people are choosing to get their news digitally, libraries pay for a wide variety of printed newspapers. At the Brandywine Hundred branch, for instance, that includes Barron’s The Daily State News, Investor’s Business Daily, The New York Times, The News Journal, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. The State News is mailed, so it’s not part of this issue.
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