The op ed piece in The New York Times this week called "News You Can Endow" has raised new/old questions about the future of journalism.
They're relatively new in the ongoing discussion about how newspapers will work online, but the solution proposed has actually been around for some time.
The two Yale financial experts who wrote the piece suggest that conventional newspapers could survive if we "Turn them into nonprofit, endowed institutions — like colleges and universities. Endowments would enhance newspapers’ autonomy while shielding them from the economic forces that are now tearing them down."
As some of the reader who responded through letters to the editor to the piece have noted, becoming nonprofit entities wouldn't necessarily enhance newspapers autonomy. In fact, because of tax laws on how nonprofits may be involved in politics, it could significantly reduce the ability of a newspaper to make candidate or issue endorsements.
I have seen several specialty publications -- focusing on a narrow range of issues -- that operate as nonprofits. I think that can work if you're readership is a relatively small group of like-minded individuals, but it becomes much harder to sustain as a model for a general readership news source.
But I'm not a Yale financial expert.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Saturday, January 3, 2009
New Year, same problems
As the new year began, the litany of problems in the newspaper industry seemed only to accelerate. Familiar media chains facing mountains of debts and nearing bankruptcy. Others cutting back on staff of benefits like contributions to 401(k)s for their employees. Still more migrating toward the Web and away from print.
But it doesn't point to the death of an industry, just some very rapid and jarring changes.
This paragraph from Adam Reilly's Dec. 30 blog in the Boston Phoenix puts it pretty well:
"But the term "newspaper" has another meaning, too: it's an organization staffed with men and women who report and analyze the news for the public. Newspapers in this sense aren't about to go extinct. They are being reinvented, however. And judging from the almost unthinkable changes that transpired on the media landscape this past year — particularly over the past few months — this reinvention will reach unprecedented heights in 2009, with once-sacrosanct forms and practices being abruptly jettisoned and new models and methods assuming starring roles. As with biological evolution, some of this change will be beautiful, some of it will be ugly, and some of it will just . . . be."
The midsize daily I work for is for sale, and all indications are that a sale will be completed early this year. We don't know who the purchaser may be, but I certainly expect some changes.
One media expert quoted in Reilly's column said the first thing he would do if he took the reins of a midsize daily would be to cut staff severely, then hire people back or hire new people as additional revenue made that possible. That certainly makes sense from a business standpoint, but it emphasizes the cringe factor for those of us awaiting a sale.
Bottom line for 2009: The industry will continue to evolve rapidly this year, but most newspapers will survive in some form. I'm not sure whether my job will.
But it doesn't point to the death of an industry, just some very rapid and jarring changes.
This paragraph from Adam Reilly's Dec. 30 blog in the Boston Phoenix puts it pretty well:
"But the term "newspaper" has another meaning, too: it's an organization staffed with men and women who report and analyze the news for the public. Newspapers in this sense aren't about to go extinct. They are being reinvented, however. And judging from the almost unthinkable changes that transpired on the media landscape this past year — particularly over the past few months — this reinvention will reach unprecedented heights in 2009, with once-sacrosanct forms and practices being abruptly jettisoned and new models and methods assuming starring roles. As with biological evolution, some of this change will be beautiful, some of it will be ugly, and some of it will just . . . be."
The midsize daily I work for is for sale, and all indications are that a sale will be completed early this year. We don't know who the purchaser may be, but I certainly expect some changes.
One media expert quoted in Reilly's column said the first thing he would do if he took the reins of a midsize daily would be to cut staff severely, then hire people back or hire new people as additional revenue made that possible. That certainly makes sense from a business standpoint, but it emphasizes the cringe factor for those of us awaiting a sale.
Bottom line for 2009: The industry will continue to evolve rapidly this year, but most newspapers will survive in some form. I'm not sure whether my job will.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Print phase-out?
From Jim Romenesko's site at Poynter Online:
Oregon paper will halt Monday delivery
"Klamath Falls Herald and News
Beginning Jan. 5, the Herald and News will put many of its Monday features into the Sunday paper. Publisher Heidi Wright says the Monday edition is being killed to avoid staff cuts and rate increases"
Hard to fault a paper for doing this as newsprint and other costs increase. But how will the readers take it. The start of a new work week for many newspaper readers -- including my wife -- requires reading the latest news in print. Reading it in Sunday's edition won't be quite the same.
But it is one step that may begin to gradually move readers to online editions. That's a good thing.
Oregon paper will halt Monday delivery
"Klamath Falls Herald and News
Beginning Jan. 5, the Herald and News will put many of its Monday features into the Sunday paper. Publisher Heidi Wright says the Monday edition is being killed to avoid staff cuts and rate increases"
Hard to fault a paper for doing this as newsprint and other costs increase. But how will the readers take it. The start of a new work week for many newspaper readers -- including my wife -- requires reading the latest news in print. Reading it in Sunday's edition won't be quite the same.
But it is one step that may begin to gradually move readers to online editions. That's a good thing.
Monday, December 15, 2008
A glimpse of the future?
I'm not really sure this is what news organizations will look like in the future, or whether this is just a temporary arrangement until something more permanent comes along. But it does show that there is creative thinking taking place and new templates are developing.
From The New York Times Dec. 14:
"Politico, the upstart news source from Washington, and Reuters, the venerable wire service, have joined forces to offer articles to newspapers and sell advertising on the papers’ Web sites, the latest step in the rising competition among electronic news media to fill the void left by the shrinking print business.
Politico recently began offering papers a limited number of free articles, and beginning this week the papers that sign onto that service, the Politico Network, will also see the stream of daily output from Reuters, and choose up to 10 articles and 10 photographs each day to use in print or on the Web.
Politico would gain the right to sell ads on the newspapers’ Web pages containing the Politico and Reuters articles — though not the printed pages — and would share the revenue with the papers.
At the same time, Reuters will begin carrying most of Politico’s work on its news wires."
From The New York Times Dec. 14:
"Politico, the upstart news source from Washington, and Reuters, the venerable wire service, have joined forces to offer articles to newspapers and sell advertising on the papers’ Web sites, the latest step in the rising competition among electronic news media to fill the void left by the shrinking print business.
Politico recently began offering papers a limited number of free articles, and beginning this week the papers that sign onto that service, the Politico Network, will also see the stream of daily output from Reuters, and choose up to 10 articles and 10 photographs each day to use in print or on the Web.
Politico would gain the right to sell ads on the newspapers’ Web pages containing the Politico and Reuters articles — though not the printed pages — and would share the revenue with the papers.
At the same time, Reuters will begin carrying most of Politico’s work on its news wires."
Home delivery on the way out?
From the Wall Street Journal, Dec. 13:
"Detroit Media Partnership L.P., which operates the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News, is expected to announce next week that it will cease home delivery of the papers' print editions on most days of the week, according to people familiar with the company's thinking.
Detroit Media has not made a final decision, these people said. But the leading scenario set to be unveiled Tuesday calls for the Free Press, the 20th largest U.S. newspaper by weekday circulation, and the News to end home delivery on all but the most lucrative days -- Thursday, Friday and Sunday. On the other days, the company would sell single copies of abbreviated print editions at newsstands and direct readers to the papers' expanded digital editions.
The Free Press, owned by Gannett Co., and the News, owned by MediaNews Group, are operated by Detroit Media under a so-called joint operating agreement."
There's no better way to save newsprint costs than to stop printing altogether.
"Detroit Media Partnership L.P., which operates the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News, is expected to announce next week that it will cease home delivery of the papers' print editions on most days of the week, according to people familiar with the company's thinking.
Detroit Media has not made a final decision, these people said. But the leading scenario set to be unveiled Tuesday calls for the Free Press, the 20th largest U.S. newspaper by weekday circulation, and the News to end home delivery on all but the most lucrative days -- Thursday, Friday and Sunday. On the other days, the company would sell single copies of abbreviated print editions at newsstands and direct readers to the papers' expanded digital editions.
The Free Press, owned by Gannett Co., and the News, owned by MediaNews Group, are operated by Detroit Media under a so-called joint operating agreement."
There's no better way to save newsprint costs than to stop printing altogether.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Out of Control
Today's distressing but hardly unexpected news:
The Tribune Co., owner of the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times and other papers is preparing for bankruptcy. According to several news sources, it has hired an investment bank and legal firm with experience in bankruptcy.
This comes on the heels of last week's announcement that the Rocky Mountain News is for sale, but the deadline for the sale and the fact that the paper is losing money big time make it seem unlikely that such a sale will occur. If not, the paper is expected to close.
As someone who has read both the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Post for 30 years or more -- and I prefer the Rocky -- it is troubling news. But anyone who pays attention to journalism's problems has wondered how a moderately sized city like Denver has managed to maintain two competing daily papers for so long. Most cities went to a single paper long ago.
There's been talk for several years that one of the papers would close -- or perhaps stop putting ink on paper and become an entirely online product. I hope the Rocky finds a way to continue online, at least. As Colorado's oldest newspaper -- and according to one news story I read, perhaps the state's oldest continuously operating business -- it would be a shame to see it go.
As for the Tribune Co., it has been on the ropes for a long time. Most people I talked to doubted whether a real estate guy like Sam Zell could turn it around when he bought it a couple years ago. Apparently he couldn't, at least not in this economy.
The Tribune Co., owner of the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times and other papers is preparing for bankruptcy. According to several news sources, it has hired an investment bank and legal firm with experience in bankruptcy.
This comes on the heels of last week's announcement that the Rocky Mountain News is for sale, but the deadline for the sale and the fact that the paper is losing money big time make it seem unlikely that such a sale will occur. If not, the paper is expected to close.
As someone who has read both the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Post for 30 years or more -- and I prefer the Rocky -- it is troubling news. But anyone who pays attention to journalism's problems has wondered how a moderately sized city like Denver has managed to maintain two competing daily papers for so long. Most cities went to a single paper long ago.
There's been talk for several years that one of the papers would close -- or perhaps stop putting ink on paper and become an entirely online product. I hope the Rocky finds a way to continue online, at least. As Colorado's oldest newspaper -- and according to one news story I read, perhaps the state's oldest continuously operating business -- it would be a shame to see it go.
As for the Tribune Co., it has been on the ropes for a long time. Most people I talked to doubted whether a real estate guy like Sam Zell could turn it around when he bought it a couple years ago. Apparently he couldn't, at least not in this economy.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Some papers did well in 2007
Despite all the dismal news in the newspaper industry, here's evidence that some mid-sized papers did very well in 2007: From the Gannett Blog (an independent blog by a former Gannett editor Jim Hopkins, Nov. 28:
"We've always heard that Gannett newspapers racked up double-digit profit margins, even as bad times engulfed the industry. But I've never seen actual numbers until now, because Corporate keeps the performance of individual businesses a well-guarded secret.
"I've recently had an opportunity to review margins for most of GCI's U.S. newspapers as of a year ago (USA Today isn't included).
"The numbers are startling -- especially now, with Gannett poised to lay off perhaps thousands of newspaper workers next week in another bid to boost the company's flagging stock. Every newspaper except Detroit's was profitable a year ago -- although some, just barely so.
"The Green Bay Press-Gazette was the star. It had the single-highest profit margin: 42.5%. In other words, Green Bay kept 43 cents of every dollar it took in. The paper's total ad revenue over the three quarters: $25 million. The report doesn't disclose circulation revenue for any paper. Applied only to ad revenue, then, Green Bay made around $10.6 million in profits during the period. (Will Green Bay lay off workers next week? We'll find out.)"
2008 has been worse than 2007, so the numbers may not look as great at the end of this year. Still, with a 42 percent profit margin, there's a lot of room for some reduction.
"We've always heard that Gannett newspapers racked up double-digit profit margins, even as bad times engulfed the industry. But I've never seen actual numbers until now, because Corporate keeps the performance of individual businesses a well-guarded secret.
"I've recently had an opportunity to review margins for most of GCI's U.S. newspapers as of a year ago (USA Today isn't included).
"The numbers are startling -- especially now, with Gannett poised to lay off perhaps thousands of newspaper workers next week in another bid to boost the company's flagging stock. Every newspaper except Detroit's was profitable a year ago -- although some, just barely so.
"The Green Bay Press-Gazette was the star. It had the single-highest profit margin: 42.5%. In other words, Green Bay kept 43 cents of every dollar it took in. The paper's total ad revenue over the three quarters: $25 million. The report doesn't disclose circulation revenue for any paper. Applied only to ad revenue, then, Green Bay made around $10.6 million in profits during the period. (Will Green Bay lay off workers next week? We'll find out.)"
2008 has been worse than 2007, so the numbers may not look as great at the end of this year. Still, with a 42 percent profit margin, there's a lot of room for some reduction.
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