Protest THIS!, the satirical newspaper that began publication last year, has abandoned its print edition and will publish only online, Editor in Chief David Jones said.

Jones said the paper’s staff members decided two weeks ago not to publish print issues because they could not generate enough advertising revenue to support a print version. The paper produced three issues last year and one this semester.

“We had enough (advertising) to put out that one issue but going online was a way of extending it longer,” Jones said.

Jones said demonstrations against Protest THIS! last spring may have hurt the paper’s ability to attract on-campus advertisers. Members of the Black Peoples’ Union and Asian Student Alliance protested an issue of the paper last spring because they said some of the articles and fake advertisements were offensive.

Jones said satire often brings controversy, and he believes the controversy made student groups hesitant to be associated with the paper or buy ad space.

“Obviously, the situation last April with the protest had a serious impact with the way different organizations view us,” Jones said. “It made other organizations more wary of advertising with us.”

Jones said a preliminary version of the Web site will be up by early December at www.protestthis.com, but staff members will use winter break to work on the design of the site. He said once the site is up and running, it will be updated weekly.

“That’s one of the advantages of going online,” Jones said. “In the past, the process for the print form necessitated delays of a couple of months between issues. This is a more direct form. The plan now is to have weekly updates and to specify one day each week.”

Protest THIS! received $1,500 in funding from the Student Association this fall, and the allocation was based on the assumption that the paper would come out bimonthly. Jones said the group spent $700 to produce its first issue this September.

Jones said the paper had a run of 6,000 copies at a cost of $700, leaving the group $750 to $800 after its first issue of the semester. He said the Web domain cost $80 to set up, and will cost an additional $20 a month to maintain.

SA graduate Sen. J.P. Blackford (SEAS), chair of the SA’s finance committee, said Protest THIS!’s funding will be reviewed when the committee conducts its mid-year review of student group funding next semester.

Blackford said the group’s original allocation was based on the estimate that each issue would cost approximately $700 to produce. He said unless Protest THIS! staff members can show that the cost of publishing online is comparable to publishing in print form, its budget most likely will be reduced from the original allocation.

“My gut feeling is the costs will be considerably less to publish online, so the allocation will most likely decrease,” Blackford said.

Jones said he is unsure whether Protest THIS! will reapply for SA funding because its costs are considerably less now that it publishes online. He said if the group does apply for funding, it does not expect to receive as much funding as it did when it published print editions of the paper.

“There’s no way we are going to try to take advantage of the funding process,” Jones said. “We aren’t even sure if we will apply for funding again, but we definitely won’t apply for as much as we received in the fall.”

Jones said he will not rule out the idea of returning to a print format, but for now, he thinks putting the paper online will help broaden its audience. He said Protest THIS! can broaden its audience by going online because the Web can be accessed by people other than GW students. He said the staff also has considered offering subscriptions to people who are interested in receiving print editions of the online version.