Newspapers: Getting Kicked into Change

With the recent announcements of even more newspapers folding or facing major cutbacks, lots of change is in the air for media corporations. Folio’s recent 2009 media predictions create a sense of urgency for media to evolve into a more user-friendly version of itself.

Keith Kelly, a columnist for New York Post suggests:

More closings of magazines and newspapers and more survivors clinging to the online world as a life boat. Fundamental problem of the digital age vs. print. While the gross numbers grows, advertisers still don’t invest in all the niche products with anywhere near the level of support that they once had for old mainstream media.

While Andy Cohn of VP Media foresees:

Five out of every 10 magazines and newspapers will go out of business, scale down their frequency or move entirely to the Web.  This will not just be survival of the fittest, rather survival of the most willing and able to adapt to the changing media paradigm, and throw all of the old rules out the window.

David Callaway sees the threat of the institution leaders will force innovations to save newspapers:

Unlike autos and finance, the problem with newspapers isn’t the content, but the delivery. The business side was too slow to adapt…So, by all means, mourn the passing of great names, just as we do in other industries. But look for the new channels from which all the talent that made them great will flow.

 

DC gets literate?

So along with that free Express tabloid paper for the morning commute, we’ll start getting some Oprah-like book suggestions with a Bit o’ Lit. I like reading about reading.

Facebook for Mags

Mediabistro’s Fishbowl recently focused on the need for magazine publishers to go Web 2.0 completely. In their article the

MPA Digital Conference was heavy on the “you should be doing this already, you entrenched print industry.” Only this time, it was social networking and user-generated content freaking out the magazine folk: You’ve got to be making widgets to disseminate your content on all the social networking sites — Facebook, MySpace and infinite others. You should be shooting Web video everywhere your outlet goes, making producers of your reporters, editors, and other content pros whose under-the-radar days are numbered.

I wonder how hard more tenured staff will find this. Even for the younger generation is their an ick factor even if they have the technical skills to pull this off? This is very web 2.0 interaction and it must be where we are headed. Steve Borsch discusses his family’s own hand in the waning newspaper industry. “We’re not alone in finding less value in ink on dead trees than we do from our newsreaders and the web sites we frequent.” He thinks the interactivity of a blog network could just be what the doctor ordered. I don’t know how this translates to book publishing, as magazines are definitely more conversational and maybe this new platform is best for them. However, Michael Geist would reject this assumption, as he points to several good reasons why book publishers need to jump on the web 2.0 train.

I am quite interested in how more academic titles can take advantage of these online delivery platforms without taking away from their intended message. It seems even Dr. Seuss has gone digital. Ross Dawson reiterates the importance of a networked connection from publisher to clients:

“Absolutely we are shifting into a world where experiences and physical interactions are becoming more important than ever… We are yet to see whether the spaces where people spend their time are those based around books and collected information.”

Book Reviews

As many newspapers do away with the old fashioned book review sections, readers are forced to seek out information through a variety of other means. Chicago Times Book Editor, Cheryl L. Reed has a great article berating the industry move to eliminate these sections:

…there will be fewer readers cultivated, fewer points of views disseminated and, ultimately, fewer authors discovered, some in our own backyards. It’s about the loss of divergent opinions and one giant step toward homogenous, mass-produced, wire transmitted comment. And who wants to read that?

 I came across a great Lit Blog by someone who works at an independent bookstore in NY. This “Book Nerd” has great links to a plethora of other independent bookstores. He discusses the issues of both print and online book reviews:

I feel unfortunately the “conflict” between bloggers and professional print reviewers has been couched in terms of Elitist Snobs versus Uninformed Masses. That seems pretty stereotypical and unlikely to be true, and I squirm uncomfortably whenever an author or a blogger makes an assertion in such terms. Though the debate may fairly be described as Amateur vs. Professional, the perspective and talent of someone talking about books can really only be accurately discussed on a case-by-case basis…              

The strength of newspaper, print, and magazine reviews is not that they are “better” than amateur reviews, but that they take that conversation into another portion of the world. They make the cultural dialogue about books important enough to exist alongside the news and the sports page. They give us touchstones, as the booksellers who responded can attest, that cross demographics and genres and levels of technological comfort. They give legitimacy and structure to the rich thoughts and words about literature that are happening in people’s minds and mouths and on their computer screens.

While I am saddened by some newspapers removal of book review sections, I am hopeful that over time an amalgamation of print and online information will continue to draw readers to books they would have otherwise overlooked. This will also force publishers to find new interactive outlets for promoting their titles. The book will not die but its ability to fend for itself during change will be more and more imperative in our digital age.

Early Morning Woops

So I read People Magazine. It’s my little extravagant mindless joy not just exercised when I’m traveling and can ok reading trash. Once I found out they had an online edition I was more than hooked.

Today I was doing my pre-lunch check online and saw the story about Jamie Pressly’s new bundle of joy which was most definitely in editing stages with a big “DO NOT PUBLISH” written across the title of the story. I find it funny that some web master was likely trying to fill pages and just published it. A half hour later the story is “finalized” and areas where the author was intending to add more information lacks any updates.

It also shows how media outlets follow cookie cutter, pre-described notions of what their readers want to see. Add quotes here, juicy tid-bit here.

Yeah, like I said I read this stuff (and I’m not proud) but the newspaper editor in me awakens when I see things like this Woops.

On another note, I found this hilarious blog run by Craig Silverman listing the regrettable errors of numerous media outlets. Is this where Jay Leno steals his clips from?

Digital Marketing for Books

Sadly I only recently realized the vast wonders that is Technorati. I have been amazed at the many technological advancements in the past six months, but having so many brilliant ideas out there it’s been a great tool to access them. Blogger and author Siva Vaidhyanathan contributes to a great site which encapsulates many of my own interests. He reacts to Robert Townsend’s  recent post on Google’s book project.  

And now Publishers Weekly has announced Simon & Schuster is utilizing a new video channel (accessible by YouTube and others sites) to promote their upcoming books. Blogger and author, Kristi Knight also discusses the limitless promotional uses going digital provides. “More online users are logging on to see video (book trailers, anyone?) or listen (radio, online versions of local news, podcasts of favorite speakers) or read (newspapers, magazines). So why not tap into that same audience, an audience that has a hunger for new content, with my own books? Makes sense to me.” And it’s going to start making sense to many book publishers in this day and age where going digital doesn’t just mean creating and updating a common website. 

Blogger Chris Meade has a great insight of the evolving forces book publishers and authors face. “For those interested in making multimedia literature for the web, it’s frustrating that the literati cling on so tightly to their books. And yet all those who love reading are right to be wary of changes that might threaten the essence of what they hold so dear.”

We the Media

Dan Gillmor’s We the Media sets the stage for the future of journalism where everyone, not just professional journalists, participates in news dissemination. He cites several instances where regular joe schmo’s (himself included) have made major impacts due to powerful communication technologies including blog posts. As someone who originally intended on a career in journalism I am keenly interested in journalism’s transformation in our current digital age. Gillmor revisits the history of journalism and free speech and sees the incorporation of technology to reconfigure once standard definitions of media. He seems excited about the benefits technology allows his field, but also warns complacency can have damaging repercussions. He asserts there is a need to embrace technology, create reasonable guidelines and plans, in order to move forward and reap the benefits it allows.

One thing that stood central to Gillmore’s argument, was the idea that no matter what medium is chosen to disseminate information that it be done with honesty and integrity. He gave credit to numerous companies who had the courage to place even unflattering news online, because in an age of the Internet, information both bad and good is easily found by anyone willing to look for it. The enormous range of technological communications, blogs specifically, struck me in a way I hadn’t anticipated. I have numerous friends who use blogs as a means of showing they are cultured in ways of books and artsy films, even to poke fun at themselves as grown up children with their fascination to video games. But, I have not thought of personal blogs as a means to change history, even in an almost insignificant way. Gillmore’s vast knowledge not only has media implications, but the various groups who have profoundly changed industries with the help of blogs. From the funding and the workings of a political campaign, to someone just extremely knowledgeable about baby strollers, the World Wide Web offers just that, an endless ability to shape the world around us.

The only downside to Gillmore’s digital world, is there is a frightening sense of the unknown. The ability to adapt to the next “best thing” could prove difficult for those who have already fought to gain comfort with the last technological advances. To constantly reconceptualize our place in this age of technology can be frustrating. However, the idea that all of us, not just the CEO’s and the New York Times reporters have our own say is powerful enough to make us want to quickly adapt. For, if we follow Gillmore’s advice and listen hard and stay active participants, the world will look more like we think it should.