Responses to cut stock listings in Kalamazoo

The Kalamazoo Gazette recently cut its stock listings, and business editor Al Jones wrote a column in Sunday’s paper describing some of the responses that he received due to the changes.

Jones writes, “Joan Watkins, of Kalamazoo, said she was unhappy about the change, but she did not lose her sense of humor. She asked if I wanted her ‘to come down there and X out all the things that don’t need to be in the paper, so there’s room for the stock listings.”

“Those vociferously against the change were characterized by readers like R.E. Handy, of Portage, who wrote: ‘Please leave the stock report as is! It is one of the few pieces of worthwhile information in your Sunday editions.’

“Dale Smith, of Scotts, chimed in, leaving a lengthy voice mail. He said he has used the listings for many years to track dozens of companies. He said he sits down with them each Sunday to not only track what he owns, but to consider new shares to buy.

“‘I kind of feel betrayed, too, because many of the stocks I purchased, I bought them because I could track them in the Gazette and — poof — they’re going,’ he said.

“We want people to know that we will do our best to continue to list stocks and mutual funds that they care about, and we’ll do the same for the more than 20 other people who wrote asking that we keep their favorites.”

Read more here, including an interesting response from a professor at Western Michigan University.