His answer, basically, is that readers probably won’t carry the paper around, but they will rip out blog excerpts that interest them. But this prediction was buried in a lengthy soliloquy. First, Pergament admits I might be right. Then he notes the technological savvy of most twenty- and thirtysomethings, calls BostonNOW a “very natural blending” of the print and online worlds, says he likes seeing people reading his papers in public places, begins a discussion of folding newspapers that ends abruptly, notes the average number of readers worldwide for a single issue of a free daily (between 2.1 and 3.5 readers per copy), leafs through that day’s issue to identify the total number of blogs referenced (approximately 10), and predicts that this total would soon grow (to between 20 and 30).
Given the diffuseness of this reply, it’s tempting to dismiss it as high-level sales bombast. But Pergament’s track record with both advertisers and readers suggests this would be a mistake. The Tabs, for example, were based on a concept known as total market penetration: delivered free to every household in some of Boston’s most upscale suburbs, they attracted major retailers as well as high-end independent merchants who couldn’t afford to advertise in the Globe.
In terms of content, meanwhile, the Tabs featured more muckraking, more political analysis, and much better writing than the enervated community weeklies they quickly replaced. And Pergament played a role here, too, writing a regular column and actively guiding coverage. Some of his decisions were odd; a Pergament-penned column called “Meet My Cat” remains something of a local journalistic legend. But most of them proved to be astute.
“Russel’s strength may be on the business side,” says Mark Jurkowitz, a former Tab editor (and ex-Phoenix staffer) who’s now associate director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism, “but on the editorial side, he had a real knack for the kind of populist journalism that everyone liked, whether it was covering health-code violations at local restaurants or publishing property values for every home in Newton. He has a really refined sense of what people like to read in their newspaper.”
This assessment is seconded by Lecesse, who succeeded Jurkowitz at the Tabs. In the mid 1980s, Lecesse recalls, Pergament wanted the Tabs to start covering animal-rights issues. Lecesse was skeptical, but acquiesced. A couple years later, he says now, Time magazine made animal rights a cover story.
“He presents this kind of manic, chirpy, witty, amusingly self-deprecating front,” says Lecesse. “But having worked with him very closely for six or seven years, people should never underestimate how smart Russel is. People do, and they shouldn’t.”
Pound of flesh
Bloodless economic and journalistic arguments aside, there’s another possible explanation for why Pergament is returning to Boston to start another free daily — namely, revenge. For his part, Pergament immediately rejects this interpretation. “I’m not here to beat up Metro,” he insists. “I’m here for this company’s growth and success.”
That said, it’s clear that the close of Pergament’s tenure at Metro is not a source of pleasant memories. (“I quit,” he says. “It stopped being fun. . . . If you don’t speak Swedish, they’re a bit of a talent repellent. I’ll say that for the record. What the fuck.”)
