Tablet could spark renewed interest in evening newspaper

The presence of the evening or afternoon newspaper has dwindled in recent decades, as publishers continue to cut costs in response to difficult market conditions. However, the advent of the tablet computer could turn things around and give a new jolt to the daily news cycle.

In the third installment of the Reynolds Journalism Institute's (RJI) Media News Consumption Survey, researchers reveal that more than half of tablet owners subscribe to printed news media, including online newspapers and magazines. Most tablet users also tend to interact with their devices in the evening, after 5 p.m.

The survey finds 60 percent of tablet users say they prefer gathering the news on their mobile devices to reading it in a printed paper. Given this combination of habits, there may be some interest for a shift in the news cycle.

Though most internet-based news providers operate on a flexible schedule, the majority of traditional newspapers still cling to the idea of the morning edition. It may be time to rethink this approach, as it is evident tablet users -- quickly becoming a significant news audience -- prefer to sit back and read the paper later rather than earlier in the day.

Many have noted the tablet's potential for breathing new life into the newspaper industry. Though newspapers are unlikely to return to the level of success they once enjoyed, the tablet may present a real option for stabilizing the industry and helping publishers get back on their feet.