Gail Nelson
The day after the presidential election, did you raid the newsstand for print copies of national and regional papers? If you did, you weren’t alone.

With inventory selling out in record time, SF Gate reports that The San Francisco Chronicle printed an additional 40,000 papers, plus 40,000 commemorative copies. USA Today produced 15 percent more papers on November 5. The national paper of record, The New York Times, pumped out 50,000 more copies, according to Joe Strupp of Editor and Publisher. Many other publications across the U.S. did the same. Souvenir seekers seemingly drove the boom.

The night of the election, I used cable and broadcast TV, multiple news websites, Twitter, and streaming audio from NPR to stay on top of the returns. A creature of habit, I looked forward to the perspective the morning’s newspaper would bring.

Last night, after first hearing on the radio about the run on the papers, I retrieved my New Y ork Times from the recycling pile. As a “first edition,” could it be worth big bucks? Perhaps. I checked eBay a few minutes ago and discovered that for a mere $149.99, a full copy of yesterday’s paper can be yours.