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What happens then?

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Ira_Schoffel, Mar 5, 2008.

  1. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    Another way of looking at this...

    So who will cover the local school board? Who will cover the local high school? Who will do those local stories?

    It will be a media (newspaper or website) organization, and this organization will always have a staff.
     
  2. Baron Scicluna

    Baron Scicluna Well-Known Member

    Unless they decide to just have parents send in the stuff. You know, "citizen journalism" and all that crap.
     
  3. captzulu

    captzulu Member

    Exactly. There's always a niche for someone to provide that in a community. The only question is how big a staff they would have. I think it's unrealistic, and a bit arrogant, to assume that chaos and the dark ages will ensue if newspapers in their current or past forms fade away.


    But the difference between those media and the Internet is that none of those could provide the same depth and breadth as print journalism. They all were basically giving a couple minutes of quick news and soundbites. The Internet, on the other hand, does have the capacity to provide the depth of print journalism and, when done well, goes even deeper and wider.
     
  4. Even if it takes government subsidies ...
     
  5. mdpoppy

    mdpoppy Member

    A lot of school board meetings are now streaming online and/or shown on TV. A lot of high school sports Web sites have popped up and been extremely popular, too. Other mediums have the capability to cover these local stories, too ...
     
  6. Captain_Kirk

    Captain_Kirk Well-Known Member

    Figuring out what the younger generations want is key.

    Young adults in the 18-28 range have grown up with CNN, cable, the internet. Immediate access to instantaneous news that they serve up themselves instead of waiting for the newspaper or the evening news to provide it to them. Those even younger don't know any other way even existed.

    And the technology that supports all this--blackberries, cell phones, iPods. All being able to get or process information now, now, now. When the internet first was coming out, how many of us thought people would be sitting with a little hand led device trading stocks, buying books, communicating with friends and doing research on a bus, in a park, at the mall.

    I've always felt there was a social aspect to reading the newspaper that wouldn't be lost. Sitting with your spouse, family friends and pointing out this story or that, discussing the day's events and news. But, I'm older; I grew up where that was commonplace, tradition. I'm thinking that doesn't resonate at all with today's youth, who are more likely to swap their blackberries to show the latest YouTube video or text from their best friend.

    Newspapers certainly have time-- the generations that grew up with them as the primary news source will still be here for several more decades.

    But, I think it's a totally different ballgame for the younger set. And I'm not so sure print factors into what they want. The folks who figure out how to deliver what they do want will be the ones to win.

    One further note: MSNBC's Fast Money is doing a series this week on dying industries. Newspapers was one of their subjects. If you don't have people willing to invest, you don't have a product to develop.
     
  7. Piotr Rasputin

    Piotr Rasputin New Member

    The average reader doesn't know, doesn't care, and doesn't bother to tell the difference between a press release and our stories. In sports, many of them think our stories should just be press releases anyway.

    As for city council meetings: not only do many stream online, but the minutes of these meetings are available on the Web within a couple of days. Other local stuff? Yup, that's gonna be citizen journalism. I love how some people in journalism say that citizen journalism will keep us relevant, when in reality it will only lead to more of us needing to seek other employment.

    The biggest papers will survive, the smallest ones will too, to give news to their tiny communities. The mid-major papers will continue to die. And people will continue to take their laptops to the dinner table and the crapper to get the news they need.

    In ther words, throw me in with the "no hope" crowd. We blew it a decade ago by assuming we would survive "because we survived radio, TV, etc." I think there will always be a need for quality newsgatherers, but many of our readers would not mind seeing their local community news written by Gladys down the street, who always makes those tasty corn muffins.

    And then writes about them for the local paper.
     
  8. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    Has anyone ever read the notes from a School Board meeting?

    You think Joe Household wants to? Or do you think he wants to read 15 well written inches?

    On related/unrelated thoughts...

    I was at a conference this week where a speaker said teenagers have email because that is what old people send them. It's all about the text message and the IM.

    I could go into depth about the problems I have with McDonald's being a lower class' high speed internet provider, but that is for another time.

    FYI, many countries see broadband access as a public utility. Not something that Comcast makes billions on for a very high price.
     
  9. Piotr Rasputin

    Piotr Rasputin New Member

  10. rpmmutant

    rpmmutant Member

    The publisher and CEO of our newpaper chain came in to talk to the editorial staff after laying off 20 percent the newsroom to tell us the economy is bad. Stop the presses! So great, revenues are down, the ship is sinking, the lifeboats are all but gone. We're doomed.
    In this moment of crisis, the two people most responsible for the financial health of the newspaper and its chain, have no new ideas, no imagination on how to generate new revenue. The best ideas they had was to go to car dealers and the local mall to provide the foundation for the paper's ad base. And to have virtual job fairs.
    That's the industry's salvation, struggling car dealers, consolidating stores in malls and virtual job fairs in an economy that is losing jobs by the day.
    Our publisher said he is optimistic. I'm optimistic he can run the paper out of business in three years.
     
  11. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    rpm, have the stories that relate to students available in a textmessage type of form.

    Let's say Sally is a sophomore at Soapy High. She can sign up for a service that texts to her cell phone or PDA her all the newspapers stories about Soapy High (sports, teachers, students, school board). Maybe she can sign up for all the entertainment stories as well if she wants or the comics.

    Her parents can pay $5 a month for this feature or $15 a month for a family plan so dad can get sports on his PDA and granny (yeah I know, you wish) can get the obits on her PDA.

    There is the future of a paper, IMHO.

    Sure the paper form will be printed, but a way to electronically send the story to a PDA, is part of the future.
     
  12. rpmmutant

    rpmmutant Member

    That's the key... finding ways to produce digital content no one else can provide and that subscribers, readers, people will not only want, but need. Then the next step is convincing investors that they need to market their wares to the people who subscribe to this content, and oh by the way, have no reservations about the content being produced. Otherwise, it's another corporate driven media device that produces nothing of quality or substance.
    Not trying to rain on your ideas, I just don't have a lot of faith that the kind of journalism I knew will exist in a few years.
     
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