It's shorthand for the chief problem of transitioning a local news operation's business model from print to online: Newspaper revenue dollars become online pennies. Despite increasing readership online, advertisers continue to pay a much higher price when they place their ads in print.
A lot of that has been laid to inertia on the part of advertisers and a lack of sales imagination at papers. But there's also something very real at play as well: the loss of scarcity.Why it's so hard to move revenue from print to online
Post continued at The Nieman Lab...
Monday, January 26, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
Six essential non-journalism bloggers for your feed reader
I have a confession. My feed reader is half-full of journalists writing about journalism.
Which, in itself isn't all that bad, I suppose. But perspective is welcome after an hour wallowing in twelve takes on the latest bad news from the world of publishing.
So that's why the other half of my feed reader is full of people who do not hold journalism degrees and don't work in newspapers or television stations. These are people that are brimming with ideas, many of which are either directly relevant to the business of news, or which fire off some synapses in reaction.
Here are six that I can't imagine going a day without.
1. Chris Brogan. More than even many journalists, Brogan has been exploring what the incredible proliferation of easy-to-use tools and cheap and accessible publishing platforms has meant for average people who suddenly find themselves in the role of publisher. His goal is simple: He want to help you become a better blogger. You can start at his "Best-of" page and dig from there. Side benefit: Brogan shows by example how to manage a highly readable and useful blog. Blogging journalists are urged to crib liberally.
2. Guy Kawasaki. Here's why I know Guy is smart: Earlier in his career, his job was to convince developers to write programs for a computer -- the Macintosh -- that almost nobody owned. And he succeeded! Guy recently bundled up a year's worth of blog posts from his blog called "How To Change The World" into a book called "Reality Check." More significantly, in the past year, he created Alltop.com, a simple idea that newspapers could have owned if they'd tried: aggregation by category. As he explains, "We help you explore your passions by collecting stories from 'all the top' sites on the web." Among the latest categories: cities.
3. Seth Godin. Seth is the guy who recently wrote that real estate agents with free time on their hands should start hyper-local newspapers. So you can start your hating now. But face it, he's right. If newspapers don't start doing a better job of reporting the kind of local news that matters to community members, someone will -- and they just might just be underemployed mortgage-jockeys. Godin's the kind of guy who'll show them how. When he's not suggesting that newspapers are replaceable, Godin can be found dispensing equally provocative ideas on an almost daily basis.
4. Dave Winer. If you called up Central Casting and said, "Send me a post-hippie programmer-genius with questionable social skills," you'd get Dave Winer, or someone very much like him. But understand this: Dave is the real deal. He created RSS. He helped invent podcasting. He's been promoting the concept of a river of news that flows past as an organizing concept for headlines. And, yet, if you called him a journalist, he'd probably hit you, or at least write some withering comments about you on his blog. And then he'd probably use the experience to inspire work on yet another cool tool. Reading Dave Winer isn't a constant love-fest, but it's guaranteed that your mind will be expanded.
5. Robert Scoble. Appropriately mentioned here, as he's something of the cheerful flip-side of Dave Winer. Technically, Scoble's a journalist at Fast Company, but he's really more of a fan with a camera. That's not a knock; his enthusiasm can be catching, especially when he's raving about a new technology he's just seen that is The Future of All Things (until the next thing comes along). Recently he and Steve Rubel (below) got into an exchange -- that generated much more light than heat -- about whether video or text is the better tool for storytelling and journalism.
6. Steve Rubel. If it's true that great PR people think like journalists (and, often, are former journalists), then Steve Rubel is a great PR guy. His blog offers a window not just into the craft of public relations and how it's being put to use in this time of micro-media growth (think bloggers and citizen journalists), it's also a great ongoing conversation about communication. It doesn't hurt that the man leading the conversation was among the first to move PR into the social realm, taking it online and introducing such now-common concepts as transparency long before other practitioners.
What non-journalists do you read when thinking about journalism? Share your favorites in the comments.
Which, in itself isn't all that bad, I suppose. But perspective is welcome after an hour wallowing in twelve takes on the latest bad news from the world of publishing.
So that's why the other half of my feed reader is full of people who do not hold journalism degrees and don't work in newspapers or television stations. These are people that are brimming with ideas, many of which are either directly relevant to the business of news, or which fire off some synapses in reaction.
Here are six that I can't imagine going a day without.
1. Chris Brogan. More than even many journalists, Brogan has been exploring what the incredible proliferation of easy-to-use tools and cheap and accessible publishing platforms has meant for average people who suddenly find themselves in the role of publisher. His goal is simple: He want to help you become a better blogger. You can start at his "Best-of" page and dig from there. Side benefit: Brogan shows by example how to manage a highly readable and useful blog. Blogging journalists are urged to crib liberally.
2. Guy Kawasaki. Here's why I know Guy is smart: Earlier in his career, his job was to convince developers to write programs for a computer -- the Macintosh -- that almost nobody owned. And he succeeded! Guy recently bundled up a year's worth of blog posts from his blog called "How To Change The World" into a book called "Reality Check." More significantly, in the past year, he created Alltop.com, a simple idea that newspapers could have owned if they'd tried: aggregation by category. As he explains, "We help you explore your passions by collecting stories from 'all the top' sites on the web." Among the latest categories: cities.
3. Seth Godin. Seth is the guy who recently wrote that real estate agents with free time on their hands should start hyper-local newspapers. So you can start your hating now. But face it, he's right. If newspapers don't start doing a better job of reporting the kind of local news that matters to community members, someone will -- and they just might just be underemployed mortgage-jockeys. Godin's the kind of guy who'll show them how. When he's not suggesting that newspapers are replaceable, Godin can be found dispensing equally provocative ideas on an almost daily basis.
4. Dave Winer. If you called up Central Casting and said, "Send me a post-hippie programmer-genius with questionable social skills," you'd get Dave Winer, or someone very much like him. But understand this: Dave is the real deal. He created RSS. He helped invent podcasting. He's been promoting the concept of a river of news that flows past as an organizing concept for headlines. And, yet, if you called him a journalist, he'd probably hit you, or at least write some withering comments about you on his blog. And then he'd probably use the experience to inspire work on yet another cool tool. Reading Dave Winer isn't a constant love-fest, but it's guaranteed that your mind will be expanded.
5. Robert Scoble. Appropriately mentioned here, as he's something of the cheerful flip-side of Dave Winer. Technically, Scoble's a journalist at Fast Company, but he's really more of a fan with a camera. That's not a knock; his enthusiasm can be catching, especially when he's raving about a new technology he's just seen that is The Future of All Things (until the next thing comes along). Recently he and Steve Rubel (below) got into an exchange -- that generated much more light than heat -- about whether video or text is the better tool for storytelling and journalism.
6. Steve Rubel. If it's true that great PR people think like journalists (and, often, are former journalists), then Steve Rubel is a great PR guy. His blog offers a window not just into the craft of public relations and how it's being put to use in this time of micro-media growth (think bloggers and citizen journalists), it's also a great ongoing conversation about communication. It doesn't hurt that the man leading the conversation was among the first to move PR into the social realm, taking it online and introducing such now-common concepts as transparency long before other practitioners.
What non-journalists do you read when thinking about journalism? Share your favorites in the comments.
Buy a newspaper or save a newspaper: Your choice
What's the better way to save the newspaper business?Sign a pledge on Facebook to buy a newspaper on February 2nd?
Or work from within to show journalists how to use Facebook (or MySpace or Twitter or Google or just how and why to link) to advance journalism beyond the old business of ink on paper?
The first may briefly make you feel good about yourself, but the second just might change you, whether you're a journalist or not.
Read more...
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
CNN and Facebook create the next great news-watching experience
There's no shortage of post-Inaugural commentary available on the web today. So I'll keep this short.
But I have to say that the CNN/Facebook integration absolutely rocked. Look at this:
Read the whole post at The Nieman Lab.
But I have to say that the CNN/Facebook integration absolutely rocked. Look at this:
Read the whole post at The Nieman Lab.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Some news about this blog and me
Starting on January 21st, my journalism-focused blogging is moving to The Nieman Journalism Lab, thanks to a gracious invitation from Josh Benton, the director of the lab. I'll be joining Martin Langeveld and Mathew Ingram as the new additions to the Lab.
In case you haven't already discovered it, The Nieman Journalism Lab is a terrific site focused on the future of journalism. It's a welcome island of hope and energy in these relatively bleak times for daily journalism. As explained on the site, this is the mission:
For now, I'll also be cross-posting j-blogging links from here to the Nieman site. And remaining forever optimistic.
I'll also be stepping up blogging around higher ed digital communication and web strategy. Those posts will have their home here.
Confusing enough? At least you don't need to remember all the Wordpress passwords!
In case you haven't already discovered it, The Nieman Journalism Lab is a terrific site focused on the future of journalism. It's a welcome island of hope and energy in these relatively bleak times for daily journalism. As explained on the site, this is the mission:
We want to help reporters and editors adjust to their online labors; we want to help traditional news organizations find a way to survive; we want to help the new crop of startups that will complement — or supplant — them.
We are fundamentally optimistic.
For now, I'll also be cross-posting j-blogging links from here to the Nieman site. And remaining forever optimistic.
I'll also be stepping up blogging around higher ed digital communication and web strategy. Those posts will have their home here.
Confusing enough? At least you don't need to remember all the Wordpress passwords!
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Every picture tells a story
Look at this photo (unfortunately a low-res screencap) for what's currently right and wrong about journalism:
[caption id="attachment_871" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="Screencap from Seattle P-I web site."]
[/caption]
Here's my take. The two women in the foreground are doing the work of a newsroom, reporting news and publishing it. Immediately. Online. Unfortunately, it's the news of the potential death of their news organization.
Everyone else is focused on the man with his back to us, Hearst's Steven Swartz who's giving the news that the Seattle P-I is up for sale and will likely stop printing in 60 days.
If you watch the video of this announcement here, you can see The P-I's managing editor David McCumber on the right in this picture (left in the video) standing and taking the news as best he can until Swartz says that the days of the printed P-I are over. That's when the air comes out of him. That's when it strikes home. That's the worst possible news.
I don't note this to minimize the very real angst of the talented and dedicated people in the P-I newsroom, many of whom find themselves thrust suddenly into a tough job market, but I can't help but see a metaphor in this photo.
The only people facing forward are doing the job of journalism in the new digital reality. Everyone else is sitting vigil for a dying friend, focused on a potentially destructive nostalgia for print.
This business of journalism must change. One important clue is contained in this photo.
(Big hat-tip to Don Day of Lost Remote, who first noted this photo. He and I saw slightly different things in the photo, which is why I decided to make this post here as well.)
[caption id="attachment_871" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="Screencap from Seattle P-I web site."]
[/caption]Here's my take. The two women in the foreground are doing the work of a newsroom, reporting news and publishing it. Immediately. Online. Unfortunately, it's the news of the potential death of their news organization.
Everyone else is focused on the man with his back to us, Hearst's Steven Swartz who's giving the news that the Seattle P-I is up for sale and will likely stop printing in 60 days.
If you watch the video of this announcement here, you can see The P-I's managing editor David McCumber on the right in this picture (left in the video) standing and taking the news as best he can until Swartz says that the days of the printed P-I are over. That's when the air comes out of him. That's when it strikes home. That's the worst possible news.
I don't note this to minimize the very real angst of the talented and dedicated people in the P-I newsroom, many of whom find themselves thrust suddenly into a tough job market, but I can't help but see a metaphor in this photo.
The only people facing forward are doing the job of journalism in the new digital reality. Everyone else is sitting vigil for a dying friend, focused on a potentially destructive nostalgia for print.
This business of journalism must change. One important clue is contained in this photo.
(Big hat-tip to Don Day of Lost Remote, who first noted this photo. He and I saw slightly different things in the photo, which is why I decided to make this post here as well.)
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Flowcharting the trolls
This is great.
Leave it to the Air Force to bring some semblance of order to a process (HT: Dave Fleet) - monitoring comments and discussions and deciding which to engage with - that has more than a few of us pulling out our hair on a regular basis.
They've even created a simple flowchart, which I'd suggest, is worth printing out and pinning by your desk, whether you're running a university web site, a metro news site or just a l'il old blog like this one:
Leave it to the Air Force to bring some semblance of order to a process (HT: Dave Fleet) - monitoring comments and discussions and deciding which to engage with - that has more than a few of us pulling out our hair on a regular basis.
They've even created a simple flowchart, which I'd suggest, is worth printing out and pinning by your desk, whether you're running a university web site, a metro news site or just a l'il old blog like this one:
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