People have been declaring print dead for years. But now, it seems that print media finally bit the dust. Today, Tribune Co. filed bankruptcy and Times Co. borrowed against it’s Manhattan headquarters.

Subscriptions have been in freefall for years, as they should be. Who in their right minds wants an actual newspaper? Aside from the fact that the paper is costly and environmentally irresponsible, it’s also completely out of date by the time you get it. I’ve heard the “just something about having a real paper in your hands” argument, but that no longer holds up. As a type nerd, I won’t disagree that a real paper is easier on the eyes, but is that enough of a reason to build an industry around? Clearly not.

But the flailing businesses of America’s two largest newspaper publishers isn’t the only evidence print media will soon be giving way to rigor mortis. An announcement today from Pulitzer that web-only content will now be eligible for the Pulitzer Prize couldn’t have been better timed. So well timed, in fact, that one can’t help but wonder if Pulitzer was holding back this announcement to soften the blow for the thousands of newspaper writers who are no doubt clenching their teeth.

The solution is obvious. Publishers need to kill the print editions of all their papers. Not next year. Not next month. Now. Then, they need to roll all of their resources into their web content, focusing on new and innovative ways for readers to display and manage the news. While they’re at it, improve the ad formats, too. Web banners suck and everyone knows it. Only a few sites do it right (GOOD comes to mind). Ads need room to breath. Take a look at The New York Times. They actually sandwiched their masthead between two ads. To the genius who came up with that idea, good game. Would they ever do that to their print edition? Not on your life. Why is the online edition subject to a lower design standard? Because these publishers still think that their print edition is their real product and their website is just that – their website.

But the websites of The New York Times and Chicago Tribune should be more than web versions of their print editions. They should be setting the standard for online publishing (and online advertising for that matter). Imagine the time and resources it takes to make press time every single day of the year. Imagine the enormous infrastructure required to print and distribute millions of papers all over the world. Now imagine taking all of that money and manpower and devoting it to modernizing their web publications. Users would end up with a richer experience, advertisers would end up with a medium that actually works, and publishers would end up with a viable 21st century business model.