Over 100 writers are begging the Washington Post to keep Book World in print. You must, you must, you must, they said. If you don’t print, we won’t be read.

The Post said it needs to cut costs, so the stand-alone book section must go. Current circulation for its Sunday edition is 866,057; daily editions are read by 622,714 (Source: Audit Bureau of Circulations FAS-FAX Report – 9/30/2008). I wonder what ideas they bandied about. Scott Karp has a good marketing idea:

“It’s Sunday, time to unplug, shut off the Blackberry, and take a break.

Relax, kick back, and catch up with The Washington Post Sunday Edition”

I wonder if WaPo thought of cutting the gossip/tabloidish stuff. Or the reverse idea, adding gossip to the books section. “PHOTO ESSAY: Skinny Celebrities, how revealing can you get when you don’t have anything to reveal? And Journalist Megan Basham’s new book argues that women would rather stay at home than join the work force.”

And now, more horrific news: New York leadership is murmuring against the perceived excess of salt, suggesting that restaurants volunteer today to use less salt or they may be forced to volunteer tomorrow. Scott Stein says, “If I wrote that, readers would recognize it as satire, an exaggeration of government bullying, and maybe even accuse me of being unsubtle.” (via Books, Inq.)