Actually, I think much of the reason for TAS's demise was the internet. During the 80's and most of the 90's, if you wanted to read good conservative journalism and commentary you basically had TAS and The Natioal Review. Once the Internet really got going in the late 90's it was goldmine of good conservative writing and re-printing of conservative articles. One no longer really needed TAS to satisfy their need for conservative prose to read. In fact, Free Republic is an excellent example of this. I know I subscribed to TAS from the early 80's until about 1998. When they called and asked why I hadn't renewed my subscription, the reason I gave was the internet. The only thing I really missed from the Spectator was Ben Stein's diary. It is sad to see it go, though.
Agreed, the article absolutely ignores the effect the Internet has had, while trying very hard to blame the magazine's problems on some scandalous event. Every single serious publication is suffering the effects of the web. I used to read TAS all the time, along with many other magazines; I don't anymore because, well, we've all got information overload now.
As I spend more and more time on FreeRepublic, I realize that I'm beginning to use it as a primary source of news information, not just a place for reading others' opinions or just shooting the breeze with like-minded people. Everything that TAS used to provide me is here, a thousandfold.