Tanya Basu considers the future of the newspaper standard:
A print loyalist, [Binghamton University English professor Michael Sharp] notes that demographics of newspaper readership dictate the content of the crossword puzzle and therefore, what segment of the population is interested in it. In fact, he predicts the average puzzle solver is a college-educated white woman in her sixties. “It’s still older college-educated white people who dominate the solver base, and I don’t think apps change that,” Sharp remarked. “It’s worth noting that solver demographics might look very different if you move off of the Times and more elite puzzles.”
But apps are the future of crosswords, and puzzle aficionados realize this. According to a Pew report, tablet usage has spiked among those over 65, with 27 percent of senior citizens owning a device; only 18 percent of seniors own a smartphone. But paper is still the preferred method by which seniors get their news: while 59 percent go online every day, they lag behind their younger counterparts. Something, however, gets muddled in using a tablet versus newsprint, and puzzlers worry about the loss of the ink-on-paper experience.
(Photo via Flickr user Pete)
The Dish 