Noticed today that the deals site Groupon is offering a special on the Charlotte Observer for a 26- or 52-week print subscription for the Sunday edition, plus full digital access.

That's an interesting marketing move that speaks volumes. Why do businesses use Groupon anyway? According to a Small Business Trends article, a couple of reasons are to attract a younger demographic and to create some buzz around a product. Definitely two things the Observer is lacking right now.

The whole thing reminds me of a story writer Jarvis Holliday did back in 2010: The headline on the cover read, "Remains of the Daily" and the piece looked at what the newspaper had endured during the recession and where it was going. Here's the link if you're interested.

By the way, both the print and digital editions of CL are still free. Ya can't beat that.