Why Is Verizon Still Publishing Phone Books?

The year is 2018. I'm pretty sure I haven't used a phone book since the Clinton administration. I haven't seen one in years, yet there it was yesterday, neatly wrapped in a plastic bag, sitting in my driveway:  a newly published 2018 "Westport to Wareham" phone book.

Why in the world is Verizon still publishing and distributing these? How is throwing these in everyone's yard not considered littering?  What businesses think it's a good idea to advertise in the Yellow Pages in the year 2018?  To me, it makes them look like they haven't heard of the newest, coolest trend:  the internet.

I was complaining about this on the air this morning, and I received a few calls sticking up for Verizon by saying that the older population may not be tech-savvy enough to be able to use Google to find phone numbers.

There's also the option to "opt out" of the phone book delivery.  The site is called https://www.yellowpagesoptout.com/, and you can punch in all of your info and they'll take care of the rest!  However, wouldn't it make more sense to have people "opt in" for the phone book than "opt out?"  My guess is the number of people who are excited about getting the phone book are in the vast minority.

via GIPHY

Additional Reporting by Michael DeSouza