Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Table of Contents
Navigating Newspapers
to a Brighter Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
By Len Kubas
The solution, for both the short term and longer term,
is to boost print ad revenues as well as to grow online
revenues. Remember, it’s not an “either—or” decision.
Also, it’s not just any print revenue, but revenue that
brings with it a reasonable profit.
and each other. That will mean embracing In addition to this report, all of the perspec-
local bloggers, even traditional competitors, tives are available on the Imagining the Future of
to become the most comprehensive source of Newspapers blog, created to provide others with
community content. an opportunity to comment and react.
6) And finally, many urged newspapers to For additional perspectives on newspaper
consider new metrics by which they evaluate strategies, check out the Strategy section under
the franchise—financial metrics(growth vs. the NAA Web site Resources tab.
margin) as well as audience metrics (total We hope these essays will stimulate—or vali-
and segmented reach vs. circulation or date—your thinking about industry transforma-
readership). tion. We urge you to share your own thoughts,
strategies and successes on the “Imagining the
Future of Newspapers” blog.
From Gutenberg to Galaxy: Media does not merely offer a two-way chan-
There Has Never Been a Better nel; it demands it. Forget the obvious examples
Time to be a News Entrepreneur of Wikipedia, the blogosphere and MySpace;
beneath their novel veneers, all three have mass
By Paul Saffo media author/audience ratios with many viewing
and few creating.
“I know I asked for ice, Instead consider your favorite search engine.
but this is ridiculous” Unless you enter a query, nothing comes out.
One can’t watch Google any more than a 1950s
viewer one might once have watched the test
Legend has it that John pattern on their TV set. Instead, one puts some
Jacob Astor uttered this information in and gets information out. It is a
famous quip while sit- symmetrical process that we hardly notice be-
ting in the bar of the HMS cause it has become so deeply embedded in our
Titanic, but it also captures daily lives. Unlike media revolutions past, the
the mood of news execu- personal media revolution is a revolution with-
tives struggling to navigate the turbulent waters out bystanders. Dig deeply into this desire and
of the digital revolution. It is obvious that this countless new models emerge.
is a Schumpeterian moment, as creative as it is
destructive, but focusing on creation is difficult Tomorrow’s Winning Models
when the destruction is occurring all around. are Today’s Dusty Obscurities
Difficult, but not impossible. The secret to If you want to find a new model, look for an
success lies in maintaining a focus on the larger obscure old model. All of the big personal media
context while ruthlessly challenging every last winners got where they are by leveraging once
assumption one holds about the publishing busi- obscure—or downright heretical—business mod-
ness. In this spirit, I offer below some observa- els. Yahoo’s founders built their company out of
tions about what is afoot and a few suggestions a desire to point their friends to cool new sites.
for finding the opportunities emerging from the Google built its search empire on page ranking,
wreckage. another way of aggregating group opinion. And
eBay popularized a dusty and obscure auction
Personal Media, a Two-Way model into something everyone could relate to,
Trip without Bystanders and blasted the old classifieds model into smith-
Fortunately, the larger context is quite clear. ereens in the process.
We are passing through a media shift quite In the last month, mainline media players
similar to the rise of modern mass media in the from the New York Times to NBC have finally
1950s. Back then the agent of change was broad- realized what was obvious all along—consumers
cast TV. This time the driving force is the rise of don’t want to pay for content, and besides, ad-
the Internet in general and the Web in particular. vertisers will always pay more than subscribers.
The result is a dramatic, fundamental shift from Both companies seem content to live off ad rev-
the Mass Media order of the last half-century to a enues, but I suspect that if one digs a bit deeper,
new world dominated by Personal Media. there is more to the story. Sure, consumers won’t
Mass media was revolutionary because it pay to read, but get the model right and con-
delivered the world to our homes, but it was a sumers will happily pay for something else—the
one-way trip: all we could do was press our noses privilege of writing.
against the glass and watch. In contrast, Personal In fact consumers pay to post their content
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 7
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
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on several sites today—Flickr charges premium For example, does the idea of betting appall
users to upload photos, and other photo sites like you? If so, your affront is an indicator that it
PBase are subscription-only for would-be photo- is hiding an opportunity, and an opportunity
journalists. And there is a whole segment of the already being explored by media-sponsored
publishing industry that routinely charges au- futures markets. Readers don’t just want to be
thors to publish their work—academic journals. heard; they want to be right. This is the itch that
Just as eBay took an obscure auction model futures markets scratch. It is an itch so strong
and utterly that the bragging rights that come from success-
transformed ful prediction are as attractive to consumers as
the classified In a personal media cash won at a table in Las Vegas.
experience, I world, there is one thing But this is just one example of a sacred cow
would be sur- ready for slaughter. Look around, find your
readers want more than
prised if a player sacred cows and slaughter them, because if you
in the news to read; they want to be don’t, someone else will—and your company with
space didn’t do heard. Some player is them.
the same with
going to tap this desire Location, Location, Location
the academic
author-charge by reinventing the In cyberspace, there is no distance between
model. News ex- pay-to-publish model, two points—this has been a crucial driver behind
ecutives blanch the rise of e-commerce and offshoring, but it also
but of course this is
at the notion of has important implications for news. We have
“vanity publish- just one of a myriad of already seen news sites that serve geographi-
ing,” but the best models waiting to be cally dispersed communities defined by common
academic jour- cultural or interest factors, but newspapers have
rediscovered.
nals of course do barely begun to tap their most important asset,
not compromise the fact that they are tied to specific geographies.
on content in the slightest. And many are peer- A few major newspapers have long leveraged
reviewed, another obscure model that has huge geographical advantage. The New York Times
potential in the news space. Or perhaps not so benefits greatly from New York’s centrality for
obscure—consider digg.com. finance and business, and The Washington Post
In a personal media world, there is one thing is read across the country because it is close to
readers want more than to read; they want to the seat of national power. Thanks to the Inter-
be heard. Some player is going to tap this desire net, publishers in smaller markets may discover
by reinventing the pay-to-publish model, but that even obscure locations may be parlayed to
of course this is just one of a myriad of models advantage in cyberspace.
waiting to be rediscovered. Everyone is from somewhere, but in this age
of globalization, they are ever less likely to live in
Consume Your Sacred Cows
the place they are from. Absence fosters nostalgia
During the bubble, an upstart executive I and many small regional papers have discovered
know was fond of observing that Sacred cows a growing pool of remote readers, from expats
make the best burgers. His company didn’t sur- eager to follow the local happenings in their
vive (in fact it failed spectacularly) but his ob- childhood hometown to vacationers hooked on
servation could not have been more right. Take following the news of their favorite haunts while
your most cherished principles turn them upside back home after the holiday.
down and see if something new falls out.
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 8
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If one can attract former residents and sum- then-novel curiosity, magnetic recording. Crosby
mer renters, then why not also attract readers hated the inconvenience of live radio and la-
who never lived mented the fact that a show could run only once.
there at all? Thus, when an audio engineer fresh out of the
Business read- I’ll even bet that we will Army Signal Corps showed up in his office with
ers regularly see online newspapers a German tape machine, Crosby instantly real-
follow the news emerge that cover ized it’s potential and helped launch Ampex and
in distant cit- along with it both tape recording and recorded
ies relevant to fictitious locations, programming.
their industry, complete with real ads Hints of the future lie all around us in the
and the curi- chasing real readers present, and all it takes is a sense of context and
ous consumer curiosity to see them. Look for things that don’t
might just get following events as they
fit, that don’t seem to quite make sense, and try
hooked on the unfold in a place that to connect the dots into the future. If you are
exotic curiosities doesn’t really exist. very lucky, you might end up like Bing Crosby,
of daily life in a launching an entirely new industry.
place they have
never been to. I’ll even bet that we will see online From Gutenberg to Galaxy
newspapers emerge that cover fictitious loca- Without a doubt an old order is dying, but
tions, complete with real ads chasing real readers a larger, more complex and vital new order is
following events as they unfold in a place that emerging from the wreckage. Riding the waves of
doesn’t really exist. change is unnerving, but this is also a privileged
moment for not every generation has the oppor-
‘The Future’s Arrived; It’s Just
tunity to shape the future in such fundamental
Not Evenly Distributed Yet’
ways as we are collectively shaping the future
This observation by novelist William Gibson is today. Today’s news professionals are shaping
an eloquent reminder that the news models of to- a whole new media order, and the task is too
morrow are hidden in the present. For example, important for anyone in the industry to remain a
the 1990s rise of the Internet was foreshadowed bystander.
by the popularity of online services in the 1980s.
The path to Google began in the 1970s with
Lexis/Nexus and Dialog. And Second Life was
Paul Saffo is a technology forecaster based
anticipated by Habitat, a virtual world created in
in Silicon Valley and essayist with over two
1984 by Lucasfilm.
decades experience exploring long-term tech-
Also look back to earlier media revolutions nological change and its practical impact on
to see if an old pattern might not be repeating business and society. Paul currently teaches at
itself or an earlier response might not suggest an Stanford University and is on a research sab-
emergent strategy for the present. For example, batical from the Institute for the Future where
Bing Crosby was the first person in late-1940’s he has worked since 1985. You can read more of
Hollywood to understand the importance of a his essays at www.saffo.com
The Future of Newspapers: Web site, but I think more can be done.
A Roadmap for the Transition In general newspapers have been sheepish
about marketing like a consumer product com-
By Paul Ginocchio pany, even though the newspaper is a consumer
product. Some newspapers now employ brand
Covering the newspaper managers, and I believe that is the type of at-
industry since 2003 from titude needed to extract the full value from the
my perch on Wall Street, brand. I also believe in a dedicated marketing
I’ve witnessed a fascinat- budget to project the importance of the brand in
ing case study in creative the local market, which is now more important
destruction, as the In- than ever due to the multi-media portfolio that
ternet appears to relent- news enterprises manage.
lessly supplant all the “old”
media in its path. Most Local Content
of Wall Street believes they’ve already seen the There is no comparison between the quality,
movie and know how it ends - thus the continued breadth and depth of news content created by
decline in newspaper stock prices. But I think the newspapers and that generated by the local
the movie may have a surprise ending - most TV, radio and Internet competition. As all local
newspapers still generate a substantial amount news media converge to compete in the digi-
of profit, and thus have the resources and ability tal sphere, I think it will be much easier for the
to invest, transform, and survive the transition newspaper sites to do what TV does (i.e., video
from print to multimedia. and live feeds)
My belief is that newspapers (“news enterpris- than it will be
es” is a more accurate phrasing in this new media for broadcast I believe every
era) have significant competitive advantages in Web sites to rep-
individual consumer
today’s media landscape, levers that I believe licate what the
they can better exploit, and which should allow newspaper sites would benefit by using
them to make a successful leap into the digital do well, simply the newspaper’s content
future. because newspa-
many times a week, and
pers are the only
The list of key competitive advantages as I see yet many do not, so my
media institu-
them: the best local media brand; by far the most
significant source of local content and informa-
tion capable of view is that newspapers
generating so
tion; a significant number of sales feet on the are leaving a lot of
much good con-
street. On the other side of the ledger though, I ad impressions on the
tent.
see both the printing press and the physical dis-
tribution capability as merely short-term com- In light of the table.
petitive advantages that over time will become overwhelming
major disadvantages. percentage of
original news content that is created by newspa-
Brand pers, it seems strikingly odd that the entire U.S.
No one disputes that newspapers have excel- newspaper industry (“newspaper.com”) only cap-
lent local brands. Any given daily paper is very tures about one fifth of the monthly page views
likely to own the best known local brand in any that Yahoo! generates, and only about half of
given market. This fact typically has made the what Google registers. I believe every individual
newspaper’s Web site the most trafficked local consumer would benefit by using the newspa-
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 10
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
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per’s content many times a week, and yet many Yahoo! is a smart move for the newspapers, as
do not, so my view is that newspapers are leaving those Internet giants mostly have sales platforms
a lot of ad impressions on the table. that are complementary with rather than directly
In the Web era, I think journalists will need competitive with the newspapers. Google offers
to be more tuned in to their audience. Soon more than half a million self-service advertisers,
every journalist will have their own blast e-mail while Yahoo! has a best-in-class national sales
list and repurposed beat-branded Web site. To force—the newspapers really don’t do well with
effectively “compete” in the news marketplace, either of those slices of the advertiser pool. Any
they will have to understand what their audience overlap will likely be far exceeded by the incre-
wants and is willing to pay for with their time mental gain from the additional sales channels.
and attention. If only a small audience exists for Why not use
a particular beat, perhaps that beat will be “out- Google/Yahoo!’s
sourced” to a citizen journalist. If news enterpris- strengths to get But an inventory of the
es fully and efficiently engage their community incremental ad industry’s formidable
via superior news, local information and services, dollars, so long
competitive advantages
I believe the community will likely reciprocate by as you retain
providing sources and leads for more efficiently final say on ad leads me to believe
delivered “watchdog” journalism. acceptance and that whether I can
price?
clearly see that path
Sales
Printing & right now, I think the
Newspapers typically have one of the larger Distribution
local sales forces in a market. While the news- odds are stacked in the
paper sales force should be a great competitive Currently,
newspapers’ favor over
advantage, too often it is not. A common refrain most industry
people view the long-term
I hear from new industry executives and con-
sultants (and often from executives who have printing/dis-
left the industry and feel freer to talk about it) is tribution as a
that newspaper sales forces lack aggressiveness. key competitive advantage, as the ability to get
As one executive recently told me, his salesforce a print product into the hands of any consumer
“aggressively waits for the phone to ring.” This in the market allows newspapers to generate
complacency likely gained its roots as the second some of the highest CPMs in a local market. But
daily closed in most markets, and was exacerbat- I see this capability as a fleeting advantage, and
ed by unions’ historical resistance to evolve. as household penetration continues to decline,
the operational leverage on both of these high
Recently I’ve heard good news regarding sales fixed cost base services will really start to work
force trends, with several examples of increased against the news enterprise. I am a big advocate
hiring and a new focus on growing accounts, of outsourcing these functions, or partnering to
(particularly long-neglected smaller accounts). reduce their cost, so that a major fixed cost can
Overall, “local feet on the street” should be an be variablized.
advantage over most pure online companies. The
news enterprises ability to cover the high cost We’ve seen two watershed events in this
of sales via the print product, should over time regard in the last year –Hearst outsourcing
allow news enterprises’ to penetrate the local its printing presses in San Francisco, and the
ad base with its online, mobile and other (lower Chicago Sun-Times outsourcing of distribution
priced) niche products. to the Chicago Tribune. I think we’ll see more
of this kind of thing over the next few years. I
In my view collaboration with Google and
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 11
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
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online property, LJWorld.com, by serving up not by Glam, some merely affiliated with Glam.
only news from the print product online but also Whether it’s making content and tools portable
by embracing reader-generated content, aggre- as players or widgets, or “working the Web” by
gating local third-party content, and integrating merchandizing content for Digg.com or search
a wide variety of community tools and applica- engine optimization, newspapers must extend
tions to connect users with users. LJWorld.com their reach and engage users beyond their own
did not establish a “readership”; it forged among name-brand sites. Today, a standardized, one-
its users a vibrant community of local residents— size-fits-all point of presence doesn’t pack much
from Little League parents coordinating pick-ups punch, especially as ad networks and search
after games to business people buying and selling become vertically specialized and walk away with
local services. increasing shares of online ad dollars.
Idol: Spawned by European sensation Pop Idol find ways to align themselves with drivers of
a few years ago, American Idol has become the growth in a market they already know. Of course,
most valuable television franchise in history. It there are good reasons not to embrace the op-
is, of course, much more than a TV show. It has portunity. One is loss of control over what’s
become a social and commercial phenomenon “news,” by enabling users to contribute content,
by coordinating unleashing peer-to-peer social dynamics, and
activities across aggregating third-party content to meet users’
four relevant There’s no doubt that needs. Another is loss of control over distribu-
media plat- information, not just tion, by adopting, in effect, a “studio model” of
forms: broad- news, is a growth programming, creating content for other people’s
cast, where the media and platforms, and ultimately divesting
contest takes business, even if ownership of production. But the greatest chal-
place; mobile, newspaper publishing lenge is likely a conceptual one. What’s winning
where viewers is not. on the Web today is innovation that fundamen-
can vote for con- tally changes the definition of content. Like it or
testants; online, not, content is becoming something very differ-
where users connect with one another and access ent than anything ever generated in a newspaper
additional information on the competition; and newsroom. That this sea change is occurring is
offline, where the experience continues in live no longer a matter of debate. What is open to
concert venues and other promotional events. question is whether the nation’s newspapers will
The power of the strategy goes beyond robust resist this epic change, or choose to embrace and
offerings on each platform; it lies in coordination capitalize upon it.
and integration across platforms. By contrast,
many papers run sites that compete with their
broadsheets, and most ignore mobile and offline Jeffrey Rayport is founder and chairman of
altogether. It’s time for newspaper publishers to Marketspace LLC, a strategic advisory practice
mandate a “unified field theory”—that is, to oper- that works with leading companies to radi-
ate across platforms, including all of the relevant cally reinvent how they interact with and relate
ones, in ways that create one experience of their to customers. Mr. Rayport, a former faculty
brands instead of many. member at Harvard Business School, focuses
Put these strategies together and publish- his consulting work on opportunities for busi-
ers could take away a roadmap for the future of nesses to drive growth by transforming their
newspapers. There’s no doubt that information, customer-engagement strategies, particularly
not just news, is a growth business, even if news- in information-intensive industries.
paper publishing is not. But newspapers must
2018 Memoir from a Digital Pioneer Let’s look at how far we have come with those
strategic advantages and how some companies
By Howard Finberg have succeeded while others failed:
Other companies allowed their stock to be about the same time as the rollout of easy to use
battered [the executives suffered the most] and and very inexpensive flexible display devices.
used the time to invest in new technologies and Pioneered by companies like eInk, these devices
products. The companies unwilling to change— were a cross between a printed product and a
dreaming of the days of high stock values along personal digital assistant. Consumers jumped at
with 25% profit margins—suffered the most. Few the chance to use touch screens and voice to find
of them made it to 2018. what they want and be alerted to what they need
Several media organizations decided that their to know.7
public mission was too important to leave to Even the keyboard seems a curiosity today.
stockholders. After taking themselves private [a Most of us use touch screens and voice to find
few were family what we need or to get the latest solutions to an
owned], these ever increasingly chaotic world.
companies of- The resurgence in news
fered their stock consumption came The More Things Change
to non-profit about the same time as A cynic’s view of the 2018 media landscape
institutes such might be, “The more things change, the more
as universities the rollout of easy to use they look the same.” It’s true.
and training and very inexpensive Things don’t change very quickly. Sometimes
centers such flexible display devices. the basic concept of a medium doesn’t change at
as The Poynter all.
Institute.
Take a look at movies. The concept is still the
For all of the pain and suffering caused by same as in the time of Thomas Edison. What
technology, especially cheap computers and changes, however, are two very important things:
high-speed Internet access, by 2014 new devices
actually made media companies more successful. n The technology to create and deliver.
One of the biggest benefits came to those n he business model to support the creative
T
companies who managed digital platforms [we process.
stopped calling them Web sites in 2012]. The There are still vast audiences for movies in
introduction of widespread WiMax devices has 2018. We just don’t go to movie theaters as much
allowed media companies with their content in as in the olden days. There are still movie houses,
databases to reach new audiences. The distinction but they are like opera houses. Places for special
between cellular [phone] networks and computer events or for the revival of historical movies.
networks was erased. That leveled the playing What happens is technology’s “unintended
field when it came to sending content to devices consequences.”
that were the descendants of cellular phones.
The HDTV act that required broadcasters to
Advances in other technologies—speech rec- give us analog spectrum in early 2009 intro-
ognition, for example –also have been a boost to duced high-quality screens into households at
those companies with large assets of textual ma- an amazing rate. Prices fell for screens that were
terial [formerly known as libraries]. Finally, the the same quality as what we once used for com-
fracturing of local broadcast television markets puter monitors. Hard to tell the difference when
opened up new opportunities for the distribution watching a movie at home. And the popcorn was
of video stories. Consumers stopped caring about fresher.
the 6 p.m. news. Now, they just care about news.
The resurgence in news consumption came 7 Finally, one movie—Minority Report—got the future right.
It’s About People, Not Products Because they are lifelong learners who pay great-
er attention to the world around them, this group
By Mary Lou Fulton tends to have a high interest in news and votes at
a higher rate than other groups.
While cleaning out her Susana’s customers encompass both large and
desk, Sales Executive small businesses that serve Socially Conscious
Susana Ruiz ran across a people. For example, she works with everyone
printout of her company’s from local farmers who home-deliver organic
2007 rate card and shook foods, to travel agencies that organize trips on
her head. No fewer than which you can volunteer in needy communities,
36 products were on the to national retailers that only sell American-
list: newspapers, niche made clothing. And when election time rolls
magazines, directories, around, Susana has a hard time satisfying the de-
Web sites, mobile advertising and more. In those mands of all the politicians who want to get their
days, the company still thought of itself as being message to this key group of likely voters.
in the newspaper business and the name of the It was fun for Susana to serve as more of a
game was trying to get more money out of the consultant to her customers than a hard-charg-
same old advertisers through a slew of new print ing sales person. She helps to identify new cus-
products. tomers and then educate them about the specific
It was such a relief when the company stopped interests and buying behavior of Socially Con-
trying to be all things to all people, and moved scious people, who can be tracked both through
beyond demographic and content categories as what they click on, watch or listen to, as well
a way to understand consumers and advertis- as through tags and other consumer-generated
ers. After all, none of us can be solely defined by content.
where we live, our gender or our ethnic back- Socially Conscious people tend to have large
grounds in an increasingly multiracial world. online social networks, and many of them opt-
And now that 90 percent of all media is digital, in for advertising because they want to use their
content and advertising from a variety of sources spending power in particular ways. These days,
can be easily remixed and republished to provide almost all advertising is self-serve and rates are
different frames around the same information. based on how well their ads perform, so Susana’s
The key insight was to identify the most com- primary role is to steer advertisers in the right
pelling “lenses” through which people look at the direction and help monitor the effectiveness of
world. What do they value? How do they relate their messages. There are still a few “full service”
to the world around them? How can information customers who want her to do everything for
and advertising be more intuitively connected to them, but the company is actually making more
that world view? money now through lower-cost, performance-
Susana remembered the day when her com- based advertising available to local and national
pany’s CEO explained this concept and it made customers. The old “big fish” advertisers like de-
complete sense to her. That’s how she ended up partment stores that used to prefer one-size-fits-
on the Socially Conscious team, the group that all print advertising have either figured out how
worked with consumers and advertisers focused to target their offers or gone out of business.
on environmental awareness, healthy foods, con- Another thing Susana really liked about the
tinuing education, wellness, community volun- Socially Conscious team was the opportunity to
teering, philanthropy, travel and related topics. work side-by-side with the editor who selects
editorial and circulation. That was a structure weekend, but the advantages of focus and self-
that worked when everyone was focused on just determination make up for that.
one thing: putting out a daily newspaper. Today, Best of all, both consumers and advertisers are
the company had more than a dozen audience- happier. They have known for a long time that
focused teams, such as Country Music (focused the one-size-fits-all approach results in clothes
on faith and traditional values), Working for a than don’t feel right on anyone, and they’re glad
Living (cost-conscious and deal-oriented con- that we finally agree with them.
sumers), Just the News (latest news, sports and
weather) and the Avant-Garde (early adopters
of the latest trends in arts, technology, food and Mary Lou Fulton leads new product develop-
lifestyle). These teams publish multimedia on ment and market research at The Bakersfield
multiple digital platforms, and deliver the way Californian. She was the founder of The North-
customers want to receive it. Through the teams, west Voice, a Web and print publication writ-
the company had deepened its understanding of ten largely by the community that was the first
the community and was able to quickly see and effort of its kind in the newspaper industry. She
act on new business opportunities. started out as a reporter and editor, working
The company has fewer employees today, due for the Associated Press in Little Rock, Ark., and
to the increase in self-serve advertising and de- the Los Angeles Times. She moved to the online
creases in print circulation, but is reaching many world in 1995 when she joined The Washington
more consumers and advertisers with its new Post’s new media division and later became
approach. Revenues are lower, but profitability is Managing Editor of washingtonpost.com.
higher because the company is able to remix and Fulton also held senior positions at a number
recycle content and advertising from across its of online companies, including America Online,
growing local network. Sure, there’s always the GeoCities and HomePage.com, before return-
occasional internal logjam when everyone wants ing to the newspaper business in 2003 when she
marketing to help out with events on the same joined The Californian.
The Future Is All About to change the very business and the culture that
Connections, Not Technology: drives that business.
Papers large and small change And so we see the old newspaper operation
mindset, business then products part of a “unified” newsroom, a much smaller
part of a larger, more significant whole. That
By L. John Haile “whole” is gathering and producing news and
other content for a spectrum of services, includ-
ing Internet and an array of user-friendly mobile
I woke startled from a devices. Gone are those old TV partnerships,
dream, convinced I had since most news video has moved to Web “chan-
witnessed the future of nels” and “newspapers” can serve up their own
newspapers: The ink on competitive video.
my paper had been chang-
ing before my eyes, in The unified newsroom is distinguished, not for
color, to update the lat- its separation of media, but for the separation of
est scores from the West function. The “news gatherers” get news for all
Coast. It was amazing. media, thinking ahead to how to make the most
of the story across multiple platforms. Produc-
It was so good that it was almost as good as tion is handled by editors and producers who
the computer I use each morning to check sev- then get content into the right format and onto
eral news sites from around the country before the right channels.
walking out to pick up the two newspapers I still
get on my driveway…when it doesn’t snow. The consumer makes the choice; the news
operation scrambles to engage audiences having
Good, yes, but not good enough. The wide- general news interests as well as those with very
awake reality was that the ink-on-paper version narrow interests. Some users even pay for cus-
can’t keep up. Maybe the e-paper of my dreams tomized services.
will still come along to help salvage the format as
one of many choices available to readers. But, de- And while this requires a mix of print, video,
spite what many very good journalists would like audio, photo and graphics, only at some smaller
to believe, technology simply has passed by the operations are
ink-on-paper newspaper. reporters ex-
pected to do it Smart editors have
It doesn’t matter how good they try to make all. It is critical
the “old” newspaper, how many reporters they devised ways to vet
they understand
might add or what design they apply, there is no how to make the and edit this stream of
turning back. Ink on paper with its static, day-old most of it all, but text, video and audio
news really is old news. generally there to add significantly to
In the newsrooms of all but the smallest pa- is a division of
pers of five to seven years from now, the editors labor that uti- the overall scope and
who couldn’t quite let go have themselves been lizes the best timeliness of news and
let go. And there are no jobs for journalists who talent in each information.
continue to say they “just don’t get it.” discipline.
Newsrooms have finally abandoned that silli- The news
ness of separating old and new media, with pub- operation requires elegant planning and coop-
lishers and editors having recognized that their eration across all media, leaving no room for
job wasn’t to introduce new products but rather those who prefer to “go it alone.” A multimedia
command center, similar to what we introduced customers and then find the most effective ways
in Orlando in 1997, sits at the center, with key to deliver the advertising message. Just as news-
editors for all the different media, as well as the rooms work across multiple media to find the
graphics, photo, video and audio coordinators. right connections with audiences, so do the ad
Planning starts when stories are assigned. staffs. The databases, with their wealth of de-
Support staff from marketing are part of the mographic detail, purchasing preferences and
newsroom team, bolstering a new understanding special interests, are used with each platform.
of the audience and how a story will connect with Resurrected were the TMC, direct mail and
various segments in different ways and through zoned products. Ad staffs took seriously the man-
different media. date to work with the new media staffs to identify
There is a new sophistication, too, about communities
working with the community for news contribu- of interests and
tions and feedback on stories. Smart editors have ways to make More than 80 percent of
devised ways to vet and edit this stream of text, quality connec-
the sales staffs are gone,
video and audio to add significantly to the overall tions with audi-
scope and timeliness of news and information. ences that could replaced with people
be marketed to who saw the potential
While things still haven’t settled out and may advertisers.
never, everyone now understands that the future to meet advertisers’
isn’t so much about the technology and the de- Owners and
most publishers
needs by connecting
vices as it about the mindset of the people lead-
ing the operation and doing the work. Change in 2008 real- interests, media usage,
has become so much easier with the realization ized that most buying habits and
that journalism is threatened only by failing to of their staffs
didn’t begin to
demographics across
change and by failing to lead that change.
understand how multiple media.
The business model has evolved as well, but to work with
neither is it settled. Emerging is something of a advertisers on
“back to the future” version of database market- such things and certainly didn’t know how to sell
ing on top a much smaller old-line newspaper it. More than 80 percent of the sales staffs are
advertising program that serves advertisers still gone, replaced with people who saw the potential
needing the broad, quality print distribution that to meet advertisers’ needs by connecting inter-
a newspaper does well. ests, media usage, buying habits and demograph-
Former Los Angeles Times Publisher and now ics across multiple media. There was no place for
Yucaipa partner Jeff Johnson called this “finding “incrementalist” publishers either. Change came
a plateau” where printing, distribution and circu- fast.
lation acquisition costs were minimized, but cir- A few operations also are getting a piece of the
culation was still sufficient to meet the demands action from transactions completed across their
of the total-market advertisers. The result is that media platforms. The outlook is promising as
circulation is much smaller, and the healthiest technology makes it easier to track transactions
operations found that plateau and its steady cash and allocate micropayments. So what started as
flow the quickest. a small “take” from such things as music down-
The real success, though, has come with data- loads associated with music reviews and movie
base marketing. Ad staffs have been revamped tickets purchased directly from interactive ads
with people who can work with advertisers to has moved into general merchandise that can be
build databases of customers and potential purchased from the sites of advertisers.
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 25
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
Back to main page
Let’s start with our core product: News. How n Surprise or enlighten.
is it being redefined? n Move citizens to do their jobs as citizens.
Today, “newsworthiness” more often is de- n Hold public officials accountable.
creed by the consumers rather than the suppliers
n o a better job of holding citizens
D
of news. That poses an enormous challenge for
accountable.
traditional journalists who are finding that their
long-time definitions of news are no longer serv- n elp people navigate their daily work and
H
ing the public. Indeed, they are no longer serving personal lives.
themselves—note how many journalists don’t n mpower others to discover or share their
E
even read their own newspapers. own stories.
News reports that simply chronicle an incre- n ngage people in opportunities to participate
E
mental development or cover a meeting or an in either the process of news—newsgather-
event seem to add little value. Of greater worth ing, news analysis, news reaction—or in ad-
are reports that: dressing public problems and issues.
n elay some information you are grateful
R Think about how you, yourself, consume news
to have—even if it makes you sad, angry or every day. It’s unlikely that you read your daily
fearful. newspaper front
n ove you out of your comfort zone and into
M to back. You
your “squirm” zone. skim the pages, One take-away lesson
tour the head- is that it’s time to
n ink you to others with common concerns
L
lines, glance at
and experiences. rethink predictable
the photos—and
n ake a 5,000-foot view of a subject rather
T only go deep on stories—those knee-jerk
than a 50-foot view to connect the dots and a few stories that assignments that are
impart broader understanding. really hook you.
often as painstaking to
Most likely those
Definitions of News read as they are for the
are stories that
Heading into the future, news becomes less offer something journalists to write.
of a concrete deliverable—a story or package of you didn’t know
stories occupying some form of real estate online before. Then you
or on the printed page—and it becomes more of pull the string on other information, gleaning
an ongoing process of imparting and learning more from drive-time radio, e-mails and e-news-
about information. The process of involvement letters or RSS feeds at work. A television might
in the news, whether it’s an interactive consump- deliver white-noise news in the background, and
tion or a proactive creation, becomes as impor- late-night television may lace the day’s events
tant as the output. Look at how the processes of with parody or comic commentary. From these
posting, commentary, aggregation, reaction and various components of news, you, the consumer,
translation contributed to the creation of h2o- engage in the process of crafting a pretty good
town, GlobalVoices and BlogHer. internal narrative of the day’s happenings.
The goal is to relay and exchange information One take-away lesson is that it’s time to re-
that meets any number of benchmarks—not nec- think predictable stories—those knee-jerk as-
essarily all at once. The information should: signments that are often as painstaking to read
n Yield useful knowledge. as they are for the journalists to write. Consider
n Grow that information or knowledge. doing “charticles” for simple updates like The
Oregonian does. Tell what happened, what’s at The Forum is now an online newspaper with
stake, what’s next—and put it in a box. Link to 220 contributors who produce an average of 37
a timeline with background on your Web site. If original stories a week. Surrounding newspapers
readers need it, they will find it. have noticed and are spending resources to
News is not parroting quotes because some- compete. But why compete? Why not collaborate
one important said them. It’s not reporting lies, and even help support The Forum?
again just because a high official said them. It NewHavenIndependent.org and the Twin
is not keeping some giant scorecard in the sky Cities Daily Planet have attracted support from
and writing about who “won” or “lost” today— community foundations that traditionally look to
the Democrats or the Republicans? The Mayor build commu-
or City Council? It’s not requiring a conflict or nity capacity.
semblance of a conflict before it’s decreed to be a Many of While citizen journalism
“story.” Notice how few citizen journalists define these startups may well be a new
news this way. have a different form of volunteerism—
Nowadays, anyone can decide what’s news and mindset when it
report it, write it and deliver it as well. There are comes to compe- something baby
many opportunities to build rooms in your info- tition. NewWest. boomers do when the
structure for those who want to commit these net launched to finish coaching their
acts of journalism. Make room for citizen jour- cover 10 states
nalists, student journalists, think tanks, nonprof- in the Rocky kids’ baseball teams—
its, individual bloggers and advocacy groups. For Mountains re- it’s a fragile dynamic.
instance, check out the Council on Foreign Rela- gion, but it has
tions’ online “Crisis Guides.” It would be hard also embraced
to duplicate a more comprehensive examination the mission of being a home for a fledging Rural
of international crisis zones. Or link to Tech- News Network to help small Montana towns with
President.com, the Personal Democracy Forum’s no available media like Dutton do it themselves.
nonpartisan site that tracks online activities of Remember, though, there is no free lunch.
presidential candidates. News organizations that think citizens will freely
Invite members of your community to help contribute to their citizen journalism pages need
you investigate or report on an issue. Take some to think again. While citizen journalism may well
cues from: be a new form of volunteerism—something baby
n The Fort Myers News-Press’ Data Central. boomers do when the finish coaching their kids’
baseball teams—it’s a fragile dynamic. There
n The Asbury Park Press’ DataUniverse. must be a high degree of equilibrium, a balance
n lorida Today’s Watchdog Web page and
F between the giving and the getting, in these ini-
Watchlist blog. tiatives. Money is not the only motivator. People
Finally, make room for the small-J journalists contribute for a reason—either because of a
in your community, people who are paying atten- personal passion, to effect change, to learn some-
tion to what’s going on. They are a tremendous thing, or even to get smarter about technology.
resource and they deserve to be supported with Be clever in juicing that equilibrium. If you
space, attention—even small grants to encourage have to pay the high school that uploads the most
them to contribute to your info-structure. robust content on your hyperlocal sports site,
When the residents of Deerfield, N.H., had like the Orlando Sentinel does, consider it an
no available media, they created their own. investment in your info-structure.
Use your Big-J journalists where they can re- n ews analysts who will trawl incoming
N
ally add value. Professional journalists should information looking for Big-J opportunities.
focus their expertise and skills on doing investi- Minnesota Public Radio uses these para-
gations, identifying trends, building databases, journalists to analyze information coming
holding public officials accountable and articu- in through its Public Insight Journalism
lating the master narratives in their communi- network.
ties. n
Tribe expanders. Journalism in the future
Ultimately, the marketplace will decide what will come from many places. We should
is news. News will be whatever adds value in a contribute to the momentum of the best and
noisy information landscape, whatever helps most responsible efforts and recruit them for
people get their jobs done, whatever imparts the info-structure.
wisdom, and whatever elicits gratitude. To figure For those who embrace these challenges, there
this out you also need some new players in your is cause for a great deal of optimism.
info-structure. They include:
n
“Can do-ers” instead of those who whine
about what they can’t do. Jan Schaffer is executive director of J-Lab: The
n omputer programmers who will be the
C Institute for Interactive Journalism at the Uni-
architects of searchable databases or news versity of Maryland and a leading thinker in
games in your info-structure. the journalism reform movement. She serves as
n ollaborators, people who have the sensibil-
C a speaker, trainer, author, consultant and web
ity to see the possibilities of working together publisher on the digital storytelling models and
instead of moving into kneejerk competitor the future of journalism and is a regular discus-
mode. sion leader for the American Press Institute and
other industry organizations.
We don’t have to save the newspaper largely an amateur calling, and to make the most
industry. We do have to bring “the of it.”
press” across the digital divide. Why does Searls say that the advertising
model may be broken, too? Isn’t there advertis-
by Jay Rosen ing to be won
on the Web?
“While rivers of
Because I write about There is, and it
is coming on. advertising money
the Internet and what
it’s doing to the press, But underneath flow away from old
and follow that story at that, something
media and toward new
my blog, I am sometimes else is going on.
“Harder to see,” ones, both the old and
asked what I believe the
future of newspapers to be. he says. the new media crowds
“Where do you see things “While riv- continue to assume that
going?” Or, more bluntly, ers of advertis-
advertising money will
“Will newspapers survive?” ing money flow
away from old flow forever. This is a
When you deal in opinions, it’s nice to be
asked for yours. Very rarely is anyone satisfied media and to- mistake.
with my answer: “I really don’t know what’s go- ward new ones,
ing to happen.” (I like that answer, myself.) “I both the old
don’t think anyone does.” and the new media crowds continue to assume
that advertising money will flow forever. This
To me that is not an impossible or even unde- is a mistake. Advertising remains an extremely
sirable situation: Not knowing what the model inefficient and wasteful way for sellers to find
is, we go on. We go on with newspapers. We go buyers. I’m not saying advertising isn’t effective,
on with Internet journalism and the practice of by the way; just that massive inefficiency and
reporting what happened. We go on with the or- waste have always been involved, and that this
deal of verification. We go on with the eyewitness fact constitutes a problem we’ve long been wait-
account, and with the essential task of getting ing to solve, whether we know it or not.”
and talking about the news.
The inefficiencies that created modern ad-
Reasons for my uncertainty about the news- vertising are themselves under pressure. That
paper in the combination we know it now were is what Searls argues, and I think we need to
well stated recently by Doc Searls of the Berkman consider it. “The holy grail for advertisers isn’t
Center at Harvard Law School, who also writes advertising at all,” he writes, “because it’s not
about the Internet and keeps his own blog. For about sellers hunting down buyers. In fact it’s the
metropolitian newspapers, whose problems I reverse: buyers hunting for sellers. It’s also for
know best, it’s not just the forced march to the customers who remain customers because they
Web and the decline in revenues from the print- enjoy meaningful and productive relationships
ed product. It’s not only that free content seems with sellers — on customers’ terms and not just
to be the standard online. on vendors’ alone.”
“The larger trend to watch over time is the Searls thinks sellers and buyers can get into
inevitable decline in advertising support for information alignment without advertising and
journalistic work,” Searls writes, “and the grow- its miserable kill ratios in the battle to break
ing need to find means for replacing that funding through the noise and reach the few who are
— or to face the fact that journalism will become
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 31
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
Back to main page
actually in the market. I will leave you to read ing. If that happens, will existing news organi-
the rest and figure out why he thinks advertising zations die, shrink, limp along with expiration
will shrink to the perimeters defined by “no other dates, get absorbed into larger Web empires or
way.” find a way to grow some other subsidy business?
Suppose he’s right. Possible outcomes are a It is also possible that newspapers will morph
new business model, or “no business model at into something new, Net Based News Organiza-
all, because much of it will be done gratis, as tions—also called NORG’s—perhaps by combin-
its creators look for because effects — building ing in a fruitful way with “the amateur calling”
reputations and that Searls mentioned. Non-profit, lower profit,
making money semi-profit, part-profit: all combinations should
because of one’s The blogger who pours be ruled in. Private business, family business,
work, rather time and effort into his non-profit trust, community ownership, coop-
than with one’s erative ownership, the public radio model, the
work.” self-reported blog may crowdfunding model, the “rich person with a
The blogger initially do it for free, conscience and good advisers model,” other
who pours time build a reputation and variations on the gift economy... all these should
and effort into be made seaworthy. We don’t know how many
get paid for other things will make it across so we need to launch a lot of
his self-reported
blog may initial- that result from the boats.
ly do it for free, (free) blogging. We don’t have to save the newspaper industry.
build a reputa- We do have to bring “the press” across the digital
tion and get paid divide.
for other things that result from the (free) blog-
ging. Hardly a perfect model, but it is different.
Money because you do good work at your site is Jay Rosen is the author of PressThink, a
different than being paid for the work you deliver weblog about journalism and its ordeals
to the masters of production at the local newspa- (www.pressthink.org), which he introduced
per. in September 2003. He teaches Journalism at
So here is the deeper set of possibilities we New York University, where has been on the
must contemplate: Many newspapers may find faculty since 1986. From 1999 to 2005 he served
that they are unable to charge or recover “lost” as chair of the Department. He also blogs at the
revenues from the print era with Web advertis- Huffington Post.
into global platforms. That’s where the economic has led to the entry of private equity investors.
leverage is. This new group sees the opportunity to buy low,
Local media don’t have that leverage. What’s cut costs and exit five years later with a quick
worse, they are further disadvantaged by the fact profit. Neither of these types of investors wants
that four gates sit between the consumer and to see significant spending on innovation.
their content: the device, the connectivity link, The problem is that neither of these investor
the browser and the search portal. At every gate, profiles fits the current need. Newspaper compa-
the gatekeeper is monetizing eyeballs, siphoning nies do need to cut costs. They also need aggres-
people away from local media content. Since the sive investments in both process and product
consumer’s con- innovation.
nection to local So where will the newspaper industry be in
media content five years?
The key ad verticals
is both fleet-
have migrated Here are my predictions.
ing and gated,
a news market- to scaled online he newspaper industry will be rolled up.
1. T
place that in the The nationally-branded newspapers (The New
platforms, with some
analog world York Times, Washington Post, USA Today) will
was a magnet newspaper companies stand apart. But in the top 50 markets, one com-
for advertising either partnering or pany (“BigMedia”) will leverage low stock prices
and readership to buy up at least one major newspaper in each
buying their way into
is now too small market. The rest of the industry will also trend
to hold critical relationships with these towards consolidation.
mass. players. 2. L
everaging this consolidation, BigMedia
So newspaper will radically redesign processes, imposing
companies are automation, standardization and regional-
stuck with core franchises that face steady de- ization onto its local franchises.
clines in ad revenues and circulation. They have
Common ad order entry systems. Common
Web sites that are essentially low-CPM news
classified systems. Common classification num-
sites, sitting on platforms of poor to moderate
bers and definitions. Regional travel editors, cov-
technical virtuosity, with no benefits of scale. The
ering multiple markets. Corporate food editors,
key ad verticals have migrated to scaled online
providing copy for all markets. Common metrics,
platforms, with some newspaper companies ei-
financial reporting, etc.
ther partnering or buying their way into relation-
ships with these players. But newspapers’ share 3. B
igMedia will move all its newspaper Web
of the revenue split from these partnerships in sites onto one common platform. All other
recruitment, auto, real estate and other catego- newspapers may migrate onto this platform
ries does not come close to filling the hole left by as well, leveraging the skill and scale of a
the structural shift in the core. central platform and team.
All of this has played havoc with newspaper This will mostly be an efficiency measure,
stocks, which are overwhelmingly owned by but it will also enable the company to gain some
institutional or private equity investors. Institu- leverage with the key gatekeepers (devices, con-
tional investors have until recently seen news- nectivity points, browser players, search players).
paper stocks as a relatively “safe” investment, These sites will be recognized for what they are:
characterized by predictable cash flows and low local news sites, and not significant sources of ad
volatility. That, of course, has changed, which revenue.
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 34
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
Back to main page
or bestsellers. But most will be more specialized. logical advances. The local media franchise will
Commodity information - the stuff you can find deliver content the way our business editor now
anywhere, such as stock listings or the complete feels comfortable doing. Some of the papers it
list of matches in a tennis tournament - will no produces will be free. Others will be more expen-
longer find its way into print. sive.
Instead of producing one paper for everybody, New players will get into the business not tied
a newsroom might produce 10 newspapers for 10 to the traditions of the past. And they’ll have a
different audience types, or maybe more. We’ll ball. They’ll make less money than owners did
be slicing and dicing to deliver mass-customized in the so-called good old days. But they’ll do just
newspapers. You can see signs of what I’m talk- fine.
ing about in the way the newspaper company As will journalists and the communities they
Reforma in Mexico produces different products serve, who’ll wonder what all the fuss today was
for different audiences. about. By that time, we’ll all have gotten used to
That’s actually going to require next-gener- the fact that there is no end to the transforma-
ation journalists to be more agile and multidi- tion of the media world.
mensional. There will be fewer journalists in any
single newsroom, but there will be more of them
overall. John Temple is the editor, publisher and presi-
Today’s rules that prevent newspapers from dent of the Rocky. His blog, where he discusses
owning television stations and other local media the newspaper with readers, is at http://blogs.
in the same market will be eroded by techno- rockymountainnews.com/denver/temple/.
you are not—if you know in your heart why any- n More education.
one bothers with journalism: speak up. Now is n More leisure time.
the time. Your job, whether you are a publisher,
n More disposable income.
journalist, sales person or customer service rep-
resentative, is to produce a better world. n ore peace of mind and greater quality of
M
life for senior citizens.
That’s the happy ending—a better world.
n More love.
Focus on that objective and you will innovate.
You will find better ways to meet your business Yes, you want these things. Of course you do.
goals. You will attract and retain better people. This better, more equitable, more sustainable
You will do better journalism, you will produce world is good for you, good for your family, good
better-designed news and information experi- for everyone, everywhere. It’s also good for busi-
ences, you will think and act more creatively, ness.
more people will use your products, and more Newspaper companies have real power. It’s
will value them. not to control and limit what people know and
You will do well by doing good. do. It’s to con-
nect and em-
And, by the way, you will live in a world with:
power smart, Newspaper companies
n
Less disease—less AIDS, malaria, hepatitis, informed com-
obesity and drunk driving. have real power. It’s
munities to be
n Less poverty. better. not to control and limit
n Less conflict. No, news- what people know
n Less repression. papers are not and do. It’s to connect
solely respon-
n Less torture. sible for solv-
and empower smart,
n Less human trafficking. ing the world’s informed communities
n ess pollution and less poisoning of the earth
L problems, and to be better.
and its inhabitants. they are not
alone in trying
These things are not incidental to, or external,
to do so. But they can and should play a leading
to the success or failure of newspapers. They are
role. They should be leaders, not observers. They
not simply stories to be told, or content to be be
should be active, not passive.
packaged, or products to be delivered. They are
the benchmarks upon which news businesses In the United States, especially, this sense of
should be judged. social purpose has been lost. I suspect this is why
iFOCOS research this year found that two-thirds
Define the world however you want—as the
of Americans say they are dissatisfied with the
planet, or as your neighbourhood. The objective,
quality of their journalism.
motivation and rewards are the same. You are
working for a world with: Meanwhile, newspaper companies continue to
think of themselves in terms of business models,
n More and better healthcare.
products and processes. Technology has been
n More food and clothing for the poor. identified as not only a threat, but as a disrup-
n More freedom and democracy for everyone. tive demon to blame for declining readership,
eroding advertising revenue and diminished
n More understanding across cultures.
relevance, especially among young people. The
n More housing. reasoning goes something like this: who’s to
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 39
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
Back to main page
blame for all those layoffs, and the next round people value most in the connected society will
that’s surely coming soon? The Internet. Google. be the media that has the biggest impact on the
Yahoo! Craig Newmark, the nebbish socialist world.
founder of craigslist. The alternative is—what? Launch some blogs?
No, no, no and … no. Get a grip. Wake up. Create a social network? Install a new content
New technology and the brilliant new creative management system? Make sure you’ve got nice
class that embraces, uses and creates it, is not a mobile services? Outsource your printing? Run
threat to making the world better. Think about it. an advertising sales blitz? Put pictures in your
How can the “enemy” possibly be something that classifieds? Sell photos? Build a new newsroom?
allows you to reach more people at much lower Buy some video cameras? Trim your paper size?
cost, and not simply to deliver a product, but to Put names on your editorials? Allow ordinary
enable people everywhere to learn more, share, people to comment on your cherished articles?
conduct commerce and mobilize to collaborate, It’s all meaningless, futile and pointless—un-
and to take action? less there’s a point to begin with. So don’t forget
It’s not that people and advertisers don’t get it: Make your world a better place for everyone.
newspapers—it’s that they do get newspapers, That’s why newspapers matter, and how they can
and, in the United States especially, they no matter more in the future.
longer like what they get. Newspapers can’t fight
technology, they can’t turn back the clock and
they don’t need to persuade anyone that they de- Andrew Nachison is co-founder, president and
serve better. They don’t deserve anything. They CEO of iFOCOS, a non-profit global media think
simply need to BE better. tank and community of innovators, and man-
aging partner of The 726 Group, a business
So welcome to the new day, and the awesome,
consulting firm that advises CEOs, manage-
exhilarating and audacious challenge of apply-
ment teams and corporate boards. Andrew is an
ing your skills, your intelligence and the power of
internationally recognized expert on communi-
who and what you know to the common, univer-
cations, technology and cultural trends and a
sal interest of making the world a better place for
leading advocate for applying media tools and
everyone.
techniques to make the world a better place for
This is a vision, and a forecast: the media everyone.
From Newspapers to Citizen them from becoming the next Bell Labs.
Destinations Both new and traditional media companies
have many concerns. Digital media technology
By Kyle Redinger faces rapid commoditization as well as declining
prices and smaller barriers to entry. These com-
Both regional and local panies leverage technology in innovative ways,
newspapers have enjoyed but also use business models that build upon the
a viable business model for social needs of the community they are trying to
at least several centuries. reach. I believe that as soon as newspapers real-
Today, digital media ize that the technology is not a barrier to entry,
technologies combine the they will make the digital media startup world a
convenience of print with much more difficult place.
the richness of television, Tomorrow’s successful newspapers recognize
but, importantly shatter the problem is a cultural one, not a technological
the very barriers which entrenched newspapers one. They will also recognize readers of news-
during those centuries. The reason is less papers share their opinions in the offline world
about the technology and more about enabling and, with today’s technologies, want to share
interaction and participation by the community; those opinions in an online world as well.
in short, it is about an exchange. The winners of
the changing media landscape will be those who Changing Models
understand the needs of the community and can In addition to a community that requires
leverage those needs to create new and exciting interaction, newspapers must recognize that any
business models. Those business models will be individual has the tools to be both a competitor
less about news and print, and more about being and a contributor. The business model has to
a destination for the community. change in order to accept a diverse set of inputs.
Newspapers sit on a tremendous amount of
Things Are Different brand value. That brand has been driven by years
As a middle school student 15 years ago, my of targeted reporting and a community that has
friends and I realized that the Internet was the used the newspaper as an exclusive provider of
quickest and most efficient way to entertain information, news and advertisement. Successful
ourselves due to our control over personalized newspapers must use their established brands as
interaction and entertainment. Our parents did a platform for all the voices of their community.
not quite understand the richness of the Internet Empowering a community to generate content
medium—instant, free, interactive and open— yields a double-edged sword. There are evolv-
and no one realized, at that point, that the Inter- ing issues of liability and a fear of losing control.
net would grow into a tool which could effective- Technology, combined with the power of the
ly serve the needs of a community. community, can solve these issues. An empow-
ered community can only happen when a news-
The Gap
paper trusts its community. The more engaged a
I work in an interesting space. I spend half of community becomes, the more a newspaper can
my time with early stage digital media companies learn about the people who compose that com-
who have ideas they believe will revolutionize the munity. Imagine the ability to analyze opinions,
media world; and I spend the other half of my conduct research, produce free content and,
time discussing with established media compa- overall, take advantage of the voices outside of
nies how acquiring these new ideas may prevent the editor’s office. This interactive relationship
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They’ll advocate as vigorously for the self-de- But editors’ smart bosses will realize this new
fined needs of readers as they do for the public’s journalism can’t be flipped on like a light switch.
right to know and the First Amendment. Cus- It will take training and retraining; replacing
tomer-centric journalism? You bet, and unapolo- people; hiring a different type of journalist; en-
getically so. larging the definition of what a journalist does,
what journalism is for and who can engage in
They’ll exploit the unique strengths of the journalism; and demanding a different kind of
media in which they publish. Acknowledging, graduate from journalism schools.
for instance, that print, by nature, is a selective
medium, they’ll choose only the stuff that has the 2. Successful editors won’t give up on
very best chance of creating benefits for readers news, because the public hasn’t. But
they most want. they’ll finally take to heart the consis-
tent drumbeat of messages from audi-
This change demands a focus just as relent- ence research.
less as the pursuit of new business models and
revenue streams. It’s as important as rushing to First, let’s confront the notion that news tastes
post fresh news online, using multimedia to tell have dumbed down or that people are losing
stories, and delivering news and information interest in news. The best evidence I’ve seen on
where, when and how people want it. the subject comes from the Pew Research Center,
which uses regular public opinion polls to track
Successful editors won’t let those good and attention to 19 news topics of nation-wide cur-
necessary initiatives distract them from also rency.
tackling a far tougher challenge: rejecting insipid
journalism and replacing it with things that grip, A recent analysis of 20 years of data groups
tickle, astonish, befriend and reward readers. the topics into six super-categories and shows
that the Disaster, Conflict, Political, Tabloid and
As William Powers wrote in the National Foreign categories exhibit no trend over that
Journal recently: “… nobody should ever read a period—they rise and fall, depending on the
newspaper out of a dreary sense of civic obliga- nature of events in those news worlds. The sixth,
tion. Like great books, the best news shops have Money, shows a steady rise in public attention.
always drawn readers because they were feisty, Analyst Michael J. Robinson concludes that news
well executed, and thrillingly alive to their own interests and tastes are not being transformed
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meet the audience-engagement test—it’s not a ket showed that less than 10 percent of stories
license to ramble or be self-indulgent. It can be were enterprise. Yet enterprise yields higher
hard or soft news; serious or light-hearted; told viewer ratings, as documented in We Interrupt
visually, in text or in combination. It can be a this Newscast, by Tom Rosenstiel et al. (2007), a
searchable database, a list, a snippet, a photo national study of local broadcast news.)
story, a user-contributed video. It doesn’t have to Can every piece on every day on every page be
be created by professional journalists. enterprise journalism? Probably not. And cer-
But good enterprise doesn’t usually grow on tainly on-agenda stories can and should be told
trees. Right now, it costs more than covering with verve and ingenuity, if journalists are as
meetings and planned events, largely because passionate about getting their journalism con-
journalists aren’t trained, coached, expected sumed as they are about journalism itself.
or incentived to find enough of it. You can see But successful editors will make it their mis-
glimpses of it in every newspaper and news Web sion to surpass the 50 percent enterprise mark.
site every day. However, the odd gleam isn’t In the process, they’ll finally give themselves
enough. permission to let go, to stop doing journalism of
In print, the front page is a good gauge of marginal value. And they’ll honor, along with the
newspapers’ commitment to enterprise. I took a First Amendment, the Tenth Commandment of
random sample of U.S. newspaper fronts from readership.
the Newseum site recently and calculated the
proportion of enterprise. The average was 20
percent enterprise, 80 percent event or hap- Mary Nesbitt is Managing Director of the
pened-yesterday coverage. About one-third of Readership Institute at the Media Management
the sample had no enterprise at all. Center, and Associate Dean for Curriculum
at the Medill School, all at Northwestern
(Local broadcast news has a similar problem.
University . She is a former newspaper editor
Our recent study of night-time newscasts at five
and reporter.
stations in the highly competitive Chicago mar-
The Future of the News Business calculated that I spent more time each week lis-
tening to the circulation department’s telephone
By Mindy McAdams voice menus than I did actually reading the
newspaper. The paper was so often not delivered,
or delivered soaking wet, that it became unreli-
The whole historical argu- able as a source of news and information to me.
ment about news and tech-
nology can be compressed Those two anecdotes help point the way to
into one iconic symbol: the how the newspaper business can improve itself
telegraph. Trains were fast- and its prospects.
er than horses and carrier
Content
pigeons, but the telegraph
was faster than a train. Some motivations to buy a paper, or to look at
That was 170 years ago. the paper, have migrated elsewhere. Movie list-
ings are one example. Stock tables are another.
The telegraph spawned both the wire services
Concentrate on the motivations that still exist
and the inverted pyramid. A hundred newspa-
and on new ones that you can invent. (Google
pers could run the same wire story on page one
even has show times for my town’s wholly in-
because readers generally could not see the New
dependent art cinema; movie listings are over.)
York newspaper and the Pittsburgh newspaper at
Commodity news is not a motivation. Like the
the same time, in the same place.
movie listings, people are getting that some-
Now they can. where else.
The first step to thinking about the future of
the news business? Accept that news—raw, up- Delivery
to-the-minute, see-it-now news—is a commodity. Declining circulation might have as much to
Everybody has the same news, unless it is right do with physical factors as with content. It wasn’t
in your geographical backyard. (In that case, you dissatisfaction with my newspaper’s content that
ought to cover the heck out of it, because nobody made me cancel my subscription in disgust. A
else will.) Stuffing the printed or the digital prod- very different example of physical factors is the
uct full of what everyone else has? That is killing free weeklies
the news business. (such as Red-
Newspapers have long been involved in a lot Eye in Chicago) You will need to earn
more businesses than news. Readers have relied that have been
my loyalty by being
on newspapers for diversion, conversation start- so successful.
Even though the there when I want you
ers, education, entertainment, ideas about how
to live and what to do to have fun, and some- free paper is full and by being easy to
thing the academics call “surveillance” since long of commodity
use, like RedEye—and
before the telegraph made it sensible to rely on news, it provides
a diversion Google.
wire services.
exactly when
I used to buy a newspaper on Saturdays be- people want it—
cause I wanted to see a movie. It’s been years as they board a commuter train or bus.
since I’ve done that. I still see movies on week-
ends, but now I always get the show times from Give some thought to this physical factors
Google (www.google.com/movies). argument. You might think I would still buy a
printed newspaper to check the movie listings
I used to subscribe to the local daily, until I if, say, I were having brunch with friends, and
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 47
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we suddenly decided to see a movie afterward. people, from our newsrooms, that appeals to
Nope. I would pull out my BlackBerry and check an audience that we can build and retain?
Google there in the restaurant, without leaving 2. H
ow must we deliver it to make it irresist-
my biscuits and gravy. ible to that audience?
Easy access is a big part of delivery today: Can Content: To me, “appeal” doesn’t mean pan-
I read it on my mobile device? Does it play prop- dering. People can get “all Britney, all the time”
erly there? Will it download fast? in too many places. That’s the commodity trap
Obviously, I don’t think of the news business we need to
as being limited to paper, or even to computers. avoid. Stories
The adaptations needed mean more than simply that are interest- Content should be
reformatting so that the phone-screen version ing and original
looks okay and does not keep me waiting. They do have appeal. a mix of diversion,
extend to searchability—which means meta data, Too much in conversation
such as keywords, and also user-generated tags, the newspaper starters, education,
descriptions and referrals. You will need to earn is just plain
my loyalty by being there when I want you and boring. Many entertainment, ideas
by being easy to use, like RedEye—and Google. articles are too about how to live and
As for content, we don’t need another Google long. Many col- what to do to have fun,
any more than we need 800 copies of the same umns read like
filler, not really and “surveillance.”
AP story on every news home page in America.
You know you are competing with The New York saying anything
Times online, with 24-hour TV news channels, new. Above all, I
with radio during commute time and with the look for stories I haven’t heard a hundred times
whole Internet all the time. Does it make sense to already in my life.
try to compete by being the same as any of them? Content should be a mix of diversion, conver-
No other content provider has as large a staff sation starters, education, entertainment, ideas
of news gatherers and editors as a newspaper about how to live and what to do to have fun, and
newsroom. This asset should enable the local “surveillance.” Surveillance is academic-speak for
newspaper to differentiate its products from checking out what’s going on. Surveillance is what
all those other entities. The newspaper’s staff the meerkats do when they stand up on their hind
of trained journalists makes it possible to do legs, looking for danger. Surveillance is finding out
things—where you are—that that no one else can that the (local) housing market is going to crash—
do. First, because those others are not there—in before it’s too late. Surveillance is learning whether
your town, your state. Second, because they do (local) schools are getting better or worse.
not have your people. Delivery includes, yes, online video, and
Because I’ve been studying and practicing mobile (cell phone) updates and headlines, and
online journalism for 13 years, you might think maybe the free tab beside the bus stop—if people
I’d be talking all about gadgets and digital media ride buses in your town. (If not, maybe you ought
such as online video. I think that’s exactly the to give them a daily 30-minute podcast they can
wrong focus for thinking about the future. download and listen to in the car at 6 a.m. Go on,
steal that radio audience. I know podcasts have
Content and delivery are the two fundamental failed in many places—but then, I have heard
things that require our attention in journalism. some absolutely horrible podcasts produced by
1. W
hat content can we deliver, with our newspapers.)
Delivery also means having a Web site that and information that are interesting and origi-
doesn’t make someone’s eyes glaze over because nal and based on where I live. Frankly, if it’s not
the ads are flying over top of the editorial con- about this place, I can get a better version some-
tent, the news is 12 hours old, and the layout is where else.
so hard to decipher, it might as well be a Rubik’s We’ve come full circle from the time when the
Cube. telegraph expanded our interests to encompass
Delivery is, first and foremost, everywhere and the whole world. I have the world on my cell
any time, with maximum convenience and speed. phone in my purse. (The BBC provides excellent
(Today RSS has a lot to do with making this hap- RSS feeds.) What I don’t have is effective access
pen. Tomorrow it might be another technique.) to what’s really important in my own town.
Searchability and cross-linking among related
pieces are vital to effective delivery. Without
them, delivery is neither convenient nor fast. Mindy McAdams is a professor in the Depart-
ment of Journalism at the University of Florida,
When I think about a successful news product
where she teaches courses concerning online
for the future, I think about what I would want to
journalism. Her book “Flash Journalism: How
pay for. I quit paying for my local printed news-
to Create Multimedia News Packages” was pub-
paper because it was not delivered effectively.
lished by Focal Press in 2005. Before moving to
Then I quit reading it online because the Web
Florida in 1999, she was the Web strategist at
site was too slow and cumbersome. That’s also a
the American Press Institute. In 1994, she was
delivery problem.
the first content developer at Digital Ink, The
Even if the delivery factors are resolved, I Washington Post’s first online newspaper. Pre-
know I still won’t be diverted from all the other viously, she was a copy editor for 11 years. She
great content out there on the Internet and TV worked on the Metro desk at The Washington
unless my newspaper regularly gives me stories Post and at Time magazine in New York.
ask questions, give answers, debate issues, enabler, part multi-media company. Its goal is
form networks and stay in touch. These will to touch, connect and serve every consumer and
be not just geographic communities, but every business. It may keep producing newspapers
communities of shared interests. well into the future, but that’s not the center of its
To newspaper companies, this looks dire and purpose—it’s just one way of many ways to fulfill it.
threatening. Their core product is in decline What, exactly, does this kind of company look
because there are now substitutes that meet like? No one can say definitively yet, because the
these needs better than a newspaper. Seeing needs that will shape them are still emerging.
these needs through the lens of its old model, a But the picture is becoming clearer by degrees.
newspaper company instinctively protects and The next N2 report, titled “The Next Step:
defends that model while cramming in a few new Making the Leap Beyond Newspaper Compa-
offerings around the edges. nies,” will offer a sharpened strategic vision,
But wait—these “new” wants and needs actu- more than 30 case studies of new products and
ally are not new at all. They’re as old as the hu- organizational structures, and pragmatic “how-
man race. Our companies were created to meet to” guidance on implementing today’s most
them years or generations ago, and they used the lucrative local online monetization strategies.
best available technology, which happened to be Fortunately, it’s not too late. Lots of digital
a newspaper. opportunities remain untapped in local markets.
It’s time to wake up. We are not newspaper Our companies need to move fast, talking with
companies—we are “needs companies.” Our core consumers and businesses to learn what the op-
purpose and business model is meeting the hu- portunities are, and quickly developing smart,
man needs for information, knowledge, solutions, strategic solutions.
connecting with others, choice-making, buying There’s tremendous opportunity ahead. In
and selling that arise among people in a given every community, market or region now served
locale. Whatever by a newspaper, there are thousands or millions
that takes, we of people who will welcome the next new thing
need to do. It’s time to wake up. that helps them live their lives or conduct their
So today, just We are not newspaper businesses there. The door is wide open for “the
as eagerly as companies formerly known as newspapers,” and
we adopted the
companies—we are a bright future is ours for the making.
printing press, “needs companies.”
we should be
grabbing the Steve Gray heads the American Press Institute’s
new technologies and using them to create the Newspaper Next project, which delivered its
products and services that local consumers, busi- report, “Blueprint for Transformation,” to the
nesses and communities will want in a digital newspaper industry in Fall 2006. He is now
age. A “newspaper company” tries to tweak old helping newspaper companies learn and imple-
solutions; a “needs company” makes new solu- ment the N2 recommendations to expand and
tions out of whatever technologies, skill sets, diversify through innovation. Previously he was
sales models and access channels will work best managing publisher of The Christian Science
for the user. Monitor in Boston for seven years, where he
implemented numerous strategies to introduce
There’s no handy term for this kind of compa-
the Monitor to millions of new readers, viewers
ny—it is part local information and knowledge
and listeners.
utility, part connection platform, part commerce
What’ve we got? Paper, folks often affect, but with a genuine apprecia-
Place and People tion for the power of ink on paper. It has been
80 years since electronic media began to broad-
By Michael A. Silver cast information quickly and with an emotional
wallop that audiences and advertisers appreci-
ate — and more than a decade since the ubiqui-
There’s often lots of loose tous Internet began adding the personalization,
talk about the “assets” feedback mechanisms and measurability that
newspapers bring to their make it a fantastic venue for consumers to spend
fight for audience atten- their time and advertisers their money. Through
tion and advertiser dollars, all that, there’s not much indication that people
but the experience of the don’t like print — even among many folks who
past dozen years shows don’t have much interest in the newspaper we’re
that we’ve overestimated printing.
our own capabilities and
underestimated the speed with which great ideas If the daily newspaper had been invented after
can eclipse established products and trusted the Internet, we might be hailing it as the go-
brands. Now, more than ever, we need to get anywhere, read-it-the-way-you-want, visually
serious about figuring out what we do well and rich, verbally-robust, supersized-format, com-
how that can be adapted to what the marketplace munity-building medium of the moment. But the
really wants. fact that most newspapers don’t live up to that
is a failure of our ability to exploit the medium
When I began managing an interactive busi- to the fullest, not the medium itself. Instead of
ness for a newspaper company in 1985, the ques- grousing that reading the newspaper is a habit
tion I got most frequently from print executives that’s in decline (stupid audience!), let’s figure
was “You’re not saying newspapers are going out how to exploit the unique attributes of ink on
away, are you?” and I’ve heard the question in paper (and our unique capabilities to manufac-
one form or another for the following 22 years. ture and deliver it) to produce print publications
My answer always was—and continues to be—no. that are feasts for our LCD-glazed eyes and treats
But the vague sense of smugness that usually ac- for our Facebook-addled brains.
companied the query years ago now often seems
to have been replaced by a real sense of fear. The Shrinking the same old coverage into fewer
impossible now seems not so impossible—and pages filled with the same dull ads, the same
our track record in the hyper-competitive online stale features and same bland layouts won’t
world isn’t flush with success. So the question cut it. This is a time for rejuvenation, not life
of what “assets” we have that really matter has support—and that should start with a newspaper
become more urgent. that takes fullest advantage of the physical at-
tributes of the printed page. For the broadsheet
As the newspaper industry goes through pain- flagship, that probably means bigger and bolder,
ful restructuring for the next few years, I think with more visuals and livelier text –as well as
we’ll find—or perhaps more accurately, redis- graphics, headlines and advertisements that treat
cover — a few key pillars to rebuild upon. They the page like the big canvas that it is. It means
include the talent of professional journalists, the accepting that most readers already know about
power of local presence and the potency of the the big stories from TV or the web, and uses
print medium itself. the print page to complement that experience.
First, let’s talk print — and not with that hope- It probably also means publishing differenti-
less “dead trees edition” attitude we interactive ated print products for differentiated audiences,
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rather clinging solely to a homogenized daily Reinventing the role of the professional jour-
broadsheet in a world that’s all about consumer nalist for a multimedia era will be critical. The
choice. fact that we typically have the largest and best
One of the impressive things about the In- cadre of local journalists is a great starting point.
ternet is how it seemingly makes traditional It’s folly to expect that every good newsperson
geographic will be equally talented at writing for print,
barriers disap- shooting for video and running an online discus-
pear. We read We read information, sion. But we can and must figure out how to use
information, their subject matter expertise to produce content
share opinions, and
share opinions, in a variety of formats and on schedules that
and instantly
instantly communicate aren’t predominantly tied to print deadlines or
communicate in in ways that appear conventional notions of the typical newspaper
ways that appear article.
to make geography
to make geog- That doesn’t mean jumping on every new
raphy no longer
no longer matter. technology or abandoning rudimentary business
matter. But But geography does analysis of new projects. Every beat doesn’t cry
geography does matter offline — and out for its own podcast — and, in fact, very few
matter offline — do. But the role of the reporter needs to adjust
and our unique
our unique niche in the to recognize the primacy of the Web and the
niche in the media world is to make formats (like blogs) and techniques (like helpful
media world is it matter online too. links and search-optimized headlines) that are
to make it mat- native to the Web. Newsrooms that are encour-
ter online too. aging beat reporters to maintain newsy blogs and
Maintaining a strong local presence that is are viewing the print edition article as one by-
truly in touch with its local people, local busi- product of continuous beat coverage are proba-
nesses, local institutions, local schools, local en- bly onto a model
tertainers and local troublemakers is vital — and for the future.
not easily accomplished. We start from a great It’s important Certainly, our local
base — no other news organization has as many to remember market competitors
eyes focused on the community as we do. But that the entire
traditional newspaper content — with its empha- media universe will be reinventing
sis on rote government meetings and shopworn is shifting — not themselves, too — but
local features that bore even their writers — isn’t just newspapers. when it comes to local
enough. That means that
opportunities news in new media
Kudos to those reporters and interactive
producers who are stimulating local online may come our formats, I’d bet on the
conversations about everything from politics to way that aren’t local newspaper that
pizzerias, posting scads of digital photos of local necessarily
available now. understand which
people, and facilitating the discovery of local
blogs and videos. Figuring out how to tap the That’s one of the “assets” really matter.
passion and energy of user-generated-content reasons video
in ways that add value from our smart, creative, experimentation
well-informed newsroom is the key challenge at newspapers is so important — even in markets
and opportunity of the current moment of where there’s no shortage of video crews fielded
journalism. by local TV stations. Particularly as video usage
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Personalization is Key to ized experience for every site visitor that has
Future of Newspaper Sites profoundly and forever changed the way the local
newspaper franchise delivers news and informa-
By Kane Cochran tion to consumers.
The nearly 100 percent penetration of high-
ANY TOWN, ANY speed broadband networks has made micro-per-
COUNTRY, Oct. 1, 2012— sonalization possible. Unlike in 2007, newspaper
Yesterday, your local Web sites are no longer constrained by techni-
newspaper Web site made cal limitations. Instead, they have the power
an announcement, “We’re to create and distribute highly dynamic rich
giving control of our Web media content and applications. Each piece of
site to you.” Intrigued by content on their sites is intelligently positioned.
this claim, you went to the No longer are the sites constrained by standard
Web site. That visit was layouts or confined to grids. The successful local
the last time you saw the Web site‘s content and newspaper franchise features a platform that
layout controlled entirely by the newspaper’s intelligently and automatically presents informa-
editors and producers. tion on the screen based on thousands of pieces
of information. Each movement a visitor makes
From now on, the Web site is personalized is calculated, analyzed, scored and stored in a
based on your interests. The content adapts to database.
changes in news, economic indicators, weather,
time of day, personal browsing history and your The homepage is now a personal dashboard
own profile. A personalized experience means that provides access to individual modules filled
that the Web site remembers your last search with news, photos, videos, restaurant reviews,
was for a pizza restaurant and after you ate there, events and applications all designed to quickly
you rated it four stars. The site understands you deliver the information you are looking for.
enjoyed your pizza, and begins displaying rich Each module can be “peeled” off the page, rear-
media advertising of local pizzerias. It recognizes ranged and slapped back on the Web site, stuck
you contribute to a blog, enjoy hard news instead on a user’s desktop or flipped over to a mobile
of soft news, spend 27 minutes per week read- device. This functionality seamlessly connects all
ing sports, and you almost clicked on a celebrity devices from the desktop to handhelds, opening
news story. In short, the local newspaper Web up the opportunity to engage users from every
site is entirely designed for “you.” direction. Distribution of content in this highly
personalized world takes on many forms, but
It was just five years ago, back in 2007, that most importantly, distribution takes whichever
local newspaper Web sites were just beginning to form each user desires. That said, successful
experiment with behavioral targeting and per- implementation of this platform does not mean
sonalization. In the five short years since then, newspaper Web sites operate in a “hands off”
local newspaper Web sites learned to leverage a manner. In fact, teams of developers, designers,
powerful blend of behavioral targeting, advanced writers and editors, are responsible for creating
collaborative filtering, user-provided profiles, the content and utility required to power these
user-interaction data and sophisticated algo- complex systems.
rithms to transform the content mix, advertising
opportunities, interactivity and distribution. The Local newspaper Web sites are uniquely posi-
result, called micro-personalization, has resulted tioned to benefit the most by this emerging tech-
in a hyper-local, deeply engaging and personal- nology. The local newspaper franchise, just like
in 2007, still is the best source for local news.
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 55
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Scores of Web tion a user has with the site, the more complex
sites around the Just as they are the best their persona will become and the more data the
world are now site has to process and tailor the results.
providing twen- sites for local news,
A personalized experience is a highly relevant
ty-four hour local newspaper sites experience. The more relevant the experience,
national and are the best sources the more likely a user will continue to spend time
international on the site. The sports fan in this example will
news coverage. for local durable
see a site where sports news, video and photos
As a result, the information. fill the top left of the screen. Modules of loca-
local newspaper tion-specific weather appear at the top right. A
franchise has completely customized team tracker is available
adopted the successful strategy of offering hyper- and displays information about tonight’s game.
local content ranging from political news, local Displayed at the bottom of the page is a mash-
crime and local sports to entertainment informa- up of local pizza restaurants around the stadium
tion such as local restaurant and event listings. complete with menu and suggested choices. With
Just as they are the best sites for local news, local the touch of a button, this personalized view can
newspaper sites are the best sources for local be changed to display a personalized page of
durable information. news content or a personalized page of entertain-
In addition, local newspaper Web sites, which ment content.
in 2007 were just venturing into the then-new Personalization also extends to advertising,
world of user-generated content, now have fully offering site visitors a highly engaging and rel-
embraced their audience and are using user-con- evant experience while offering advertisers a
tent to their advantage. In fact, the percentage of higher ROI. Behavioral targeting has evolved
user-generated content on local newspaper Web since 2007, and now is powered by a combina-
sites now greatly outweighs site-created content. tion of the user’s profile information, behavior
The real opportunity, site producers now realize, and previous ad interaction. Ad sizes are smaller,
lies in their ability to develop a platform to foster but better integrated into the content on the
interaction and conversation between users to page. Rich media advertising contains advanced
create a wealth of information on local restau- algorithms and connects to databases with vast
rants, events, sports, politics and more. creative resources. Advertising campaigns au-
Once a user begins clicking on articles, inter- tomatically analyze performance and weed out
acting with multimedia, or even moving his or poorly performing creative, replacing it on the
her mouse (or other pointer) around the page, fly with new creative. Ad-serving networks are
the Web site intelligently begins changing the fueling the growth and breadth of advertising op-
layout and content. When you click on sports tions on newspaper Web sites, allowing site visi-
stories and begin reading through each story, tors the power to dictate what advertising they
for example, the site begins to present sports see on the site. In an effort to create an engaging
team trackers, box scores, news and multime- experience, site visitors now have the option to
dia. Advertising from professional sports teams select specific advertising companies or advertis-
appears on the screen, offering the opportunity ing categories.
to buy tickets to today’s game. Weather informa- Through a combination of advanced behav-
tion automatically modifies itself to show you the ioral targeting, advanced “smart ads” and micro-
temperature and weather forecast for the local personalization, local newspaper Web sites have
professional sports stadium. A persona is being brought the “local corner store” mentality to the
formed with every interaction. The more interac- Web. Assume, for a moment, that your persona
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 56
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
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As I survey the present It gives your sales force a very good reason
state of the newspaper in- to visit existing and non-advertisers. Mobile
dustry, especially from my marketing is an intriguing subject that is still
perspective as an owner of an advertising agency, new and can position newspaper sales people as
it is clear to me that mobile phones must and experts in an
will play an important role in the development of emerging tech-
newspaper readership and advertising. nology. My advice is to start
I see three major reasons why editors should My advice is simple with text
be looking hard at the mobile phone delivery to start simple
with text mes-
messaging vs. trying
platform today.
saging vs. trying to convince advertisers
First, mobile phones are already in everyone’s to convince ad-
pocket.
to use the mobile
vertisers to use
Second, the use of mobile data, as in text mes- the mobile Web,
Web, which remains
saging and the mobile Internet, is increasing at a which remains a a relatively small
rapid rate. All of the major carriers are advertis- relatively small audience.
ing their data services. Mobile phone users can audience.
and will increasingly access your content either Text messag-
in short text message bursts or via a mobile Web ing, the delivery of those 160 character messages,
site. has finally reached a large U.S. market with SMS
Third, mobile phones are always on. Web sites or text subscriptions and family mobile phone
can deliver breaking news, or direct people to plans having surpassed the critical threshold of
your paper product. But today’s newspaper Web 50 percent penetration. Importantly, it isn’t just
site is primarily tethered to a desk or laptop com- the younger group that uses text as text messag-
puter and therefore requires viewers to actively ing among 45- to 60-year-olds grew 7 times as
seek out your URL when they are online. With fast as teenage usage.
text-based alerts or other forms of direct delivery According to Forrester Research, 43 percent of
you can push 24/7 news services directly to the U.S. marketers are using, piloting, or expecting
mobile phone user wherever they are. to use mobile marketing in 2007. Major advertis-
To me, it’s all about ubiquity and direct deliv- ers including the usual suspects like Microsoft,
ery. Think of mobile phones as another driveway. Nike and Coke and the not so usual including
I see three major reasons that publishers should Dunkin Donuts and Hyundai are going mobile.
be looking hard at adding mobile marketing and These marketers are delivering promotional
advertising to their advertising product set. alerts, mobile coupons, voting and polling, con-
tests and imbedded links to their mobile Web mobile marketing advice and skills, the manage-
sites. ment of the mobile database and most impor-
The good news for newspapers is that mobile tantly, advertising to drive awareness via your
marketing is hyper local and one of the early traditional off and online properties. My sense
adopter groups is that you have approximately an 18-month
will be retail- window to establish your newspaper as a mobile
ers who want marketing expert in your community.
To give you an idea of
to build a con- To give you an idea of the future of mobile
nection to their
the future of mobile marketing, all you have to do is to look at what is
customers by marketing, all you currently happening in Europe and Asia where
sending promo- have to do is to look mobile marketing is about two years ahead of
tions and news us. An exciting use of mobile marketing is the
via text messag-
at what is currently incorporation of the next generation of barcodes,
ing. Given the happening in Europe called matrix codes or 2D barcodes, into mobile
very early stage and Asia where mobile programs. Japanese advertisers are now using
of this market, I these barcodes in print advertising to drive a
think that it can marketing is about two stronger connection with the reader. A phone
be “ownable” years ahead of us. user points her camera phone at a barcode in
by the savvy a print ad and the user’s phone automatically
newspaper sales launches the advertiser’s general Web site or
organization. Your papers and Web sites benefit unique promotional page. A real time promo-
because newspaper and online advertising will tional message is directly tied into the previously
be required to deliver awareness of the mobile printed ad.
marketing program. Depending on where you publish you may be
Even more good news is that mobile market- seeing newspaper circulation and advertising
ing represents less rocket science than your move declines. I believe that mobile marketing offers
onto the Internet in the 1990s. Text-based mo- newspapers a new medium that can drive both a
bile programs require a Common Short Code, a 5 new revenue stream and incremental display and
or 6 number or letter address (think phone num- classifieds newspaper advertising. I think that
ber) that you send text messages to. You go to this is unquestionably the right time to take a
the Common Short Code Administration, a third hard look this new opportunity.
party organization that manages and rents these
CSC’s. The CSC can be either a random number
or a specific word associated with your paper or Peter Levitan is the President & CEO of Citrus,
market. CSCs can cost from $500 per month for a design and advertising agency with offices in
a random code to $1,000 per month for a cus- Portland and Bend, Ore. Citrus has been a full-
tom code. Once you have the master CSC, your service agency since 1985. Previously, he served
advertisers “rent” the CSC from you and create a as the President and CEO of ActiveBuddy, an
word or phrase for users to text into the CSC. An instant messaging technology company whose
example would be: texting “Macy’s sale” to the clients included Intel, AOL-Time Warner, Frito
code “Mynews”. Lay and Capitol Records. During the 1990s, Pe-
ter developed and launched the award-winning
The services that you would provide your
New Jersey Online for Advance Publications
advertisers include the rental of the code, your
where he held the position of President & CEO.
The combination of advertising migration and There is plenty of life in the printed newspa-
its cyclical alter ego are likely to have a seismic per. As long as it is a newspaper that new readers
want to read.
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 61
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Publishers must follow the market, and that Shareholder disillusionment will ultimately drive
market is digital, it is interactive, and it is self- these companies into the hands of competitors,
selecting. or private ownership.
Currently daily newspapers in the USA are ex- For those companies that are willing to invest
periencing annual circulation declines of around in new products, we will gradually see new “me-
1.6 percent, so dia boutiques” opening, where the core newspa-
in seven years’ per business underpins a wide range of focused
time, sales will products in key market verticals, fashion, food
For those companies
be down by 10 and drink, sports, business. Each of these prod-
percent. that are willing to ucts will feed off each other, with readers or us-
Advertis- invest in new products, ers experiencing a range of strong local branded
ing revenues services, all coming from the newspaper house.
we will gradually see
are continuing Within the newspaper company, a centralised
new “media boutiques”
to grow, but at “back-of-house” will feed a range of distinctly
less than the opening, where the core marketed external brands, each focussed to the
rate of inflation. newspaper business channels of demand. Converged engine room.
And classified Diverged market face.
underpins a wide range
revenues are It is already clear that for some newspaper
declining faster, of focused products in
companies such strategies are successful in terms
and not being key market verticals, of the market, revenue and profit replacement,
compensated by and in particular value creation.
fashion, food and drink,
growth in on-
sports, business. So how does the newspaper company get from
line. U.S. news-
now to the future?
papers have
not yet seen the Radical treatment is required, to the body and
seismic shifts from print to online that are being the mind.
experienced in Europe, where in some markets The newspaper mindset has to change from
classifieds are down by as much as 50 percent. It single product protection, to new product in-
is also the case that display revenues are shifting novation. Core revenue streams are moving,
nearly as quickly. So the U.S. market can only and will start moving faster. Schibsted is based
expect to see an acceleration in the shift of rev- on accelerating that movement but ensuring it
enues. remains within.
But experience is showing that these levels of There is more and more evidence to suggest
decline can compensated for by greater levels of that it is unlikely that this transition will be suc-
innovation. cessfully managed through so called “converged”
So what could or should tomorrow’s newspa- advertising sales. The new must have room to
per company look like: breath.
For those companies that are content to sit “Innovation” must become as important a
back and milk the profits the outlook is not good function in the company as “Editorial” or “Adver-
at all. Given the exceptionally high levels of profit tising” with clear lines of reporting and power,
that American investors are demanding, because and targets for growth.
of lack of innovation-driven, top line growth, it Current newspaper valuation mechanisms are
is going to be harder and harder for companies an absolute barrier to growth. New products, in
to deliver a cost-driven approach to profitability. particular digital activities, need to be separated
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 62
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
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from the core business in both P&L and balance Several of Schibsted’s investors are the same
sheet, to create visibility to engender revaluation American Finance houses with holdings in US
of the new products. Newspaper companies. In the United States,
Targets and incentives for managers require typical profit margins are 25 percent. Schibsted’s
both a short term and long term element. It is investors are happy with their 12 percent.
extraordinary how many publishers and manag- The difference lies in their prognosis for the
ers will not innovate because the dilution of their future. Mind over body some would say.
profitability or gross margin has an adverse ef-
fect of their bonus.
Jim Chisholm is joint principal at iMedia
The reason that newspapers have to produce
Advisory Services, a leading, international
such ludicrous operating margins is simply be-
consulting and advisory service to the
cause investors do not see value coming from any
newspaper industry.
other source.
the newspaper industry’s friend, while abun- segments of readers, and the use of home-deliv-
dance will be its foe. ery networks to deliver products and services.
Today, we are going through a clunky tech- Classifieds will continue to show growth through
nology phase in which computers and mobile long-tail partnerships with online partners such
devices—no matter how great we think they are as Google and Yahoo. Newspapers will out-local
(remember the Prodigy 2400-baud dial-up in all other media through news coverage and its
1992?)—are slow co-opting of Yellow Pages through hyper-data-
and not very basing efforts designed to stay one step ahead of
robust. That will Local newspapers will the global online giants and direct marketers.
change. One can be the local channel on Despite these advances, newspapers will be
see the promise “lighter” organizations. Printing presses will
a global net that will be
of online video be divested, and circulation sales and advertis-
advertising to- aggregated by players ing sales will be largely outsourced. Production
day. One can see unforeseen today. If processes will be outsourced to lower-currency
the promise of countries.
it happens in the oil
tablet technolo- The core focus of “newspapers” will be local
gies. Newspa- industry, the Houston
journalism, local information, and local aggrega-
pers today are Chronicle will be my tion of reader content.
fighting their
channel. If it happens Abundance will force newspapers to spend
internal cultural
in the entertainment much more on marketing and research—perhaps
wars with recal-
10 percent of revenues versus 1 percent today.
citrant editorial, industry, I’ll flip to the
The main competitor for the newspaper’s suite of
production, and
Los Angeles Times. products will not be another newspaper or Web
sales depart-
site; it will be the jaw-dropping “wow” factor of
ments that surely
24-hour stores, Best Buys stocked 30-feet high
will yield to the ability to operate in the multi-me-
with products, and constantly rising technology-
dia landscape that is slowly presenting itself.
enabled customer service. Over-choice means
What this ultimately means is that advertising that newspapers must constantly stand out.
costs per thousands in a digital environment will
Yet there are two sinister marketing projects
rise, while print costs per thousand will decline.
that can only be addressed through a fundamen-
We’re simply waiting on technology to catch up
tal shift and a sort of industry intervention:
with consumer demand.
n
Youth: The overriding demographic target
The core print newspaper will be alive and
of marketing expenditures must shift from
well in 2017. But this general-interest daily will
middle-aged adults to 8- to 21-year-olds. The
be printed on fewer pages and in tabloid format,
nuclear family will be an anachronism from
the daily face of the overall information brand
another day, and newspaper brands have to
freely distributed to households and saturated at
attract consumers as they enter the informa-
single-copy outlets. This will be a daily guide to
tion stream.
the broader information universe available under
the local brand. n ower Middle-Class: At some point, news-
L
papers must re-connect interaction with their
The real money in “newspapering” circa 2017
brands with notions of aspiration among
will be new forms of print/video advertising in
lower-middle class people. Any semblance
the digital environments, high-quality ancillary
of a local mass market lives and dies with
print products targeted to smaller and smaller
this demographic. This is a major marketing
NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA 65
Imagining the Future of Newspapers
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Other Perspectives
The following articles and initiatives were not commissioned as part of this
project but provide additional perspectives on the future of newspapers.
Newspaper Next: The Transformation Project
From the American Press Institute
Newspapers in 2020
By Jeff Jarvis, BuzzMachine