1. Results derived
from the panel of
experts
The research and data from the Delphi tech-
nique showed that the traditional media in
South Africa are attempting to determine how
to satisfy the needs of the new era of digital
readers. The research showed not only that
traditional media companies need to re-invent
their strategies with regards to the Internet,
but that journalists need to adapt as well in or-
der to create content that will satisfy the needs
of their readership.
The research also revealed that some users
will need to be educated on the uses for Web
2.0 and that design was an important factor
to make the offerings easy to understand and
use. Lastly, the data had no clear indication
on an online payment model that could be
implemented by news organizations in South
Africa. It was suggested that advertisements
be re-invented or that news organizations
should offer a certain amount of free content,
or that they should start expanding into areas
outside of digital content. The perceptions
of the applicability of Web 2.0 applications
in the South African market are positive, and
the data shows that traditional media are try-
ing to implement these applications in order
to enhance the content they provide to their
readership in an attempt to satisfy their digital
needs.
Status of the media
industry in South
Africa
The media industry globally is at a cross-
roads with varying expressions of future pre-
dictions for traditional media. Some predict
the end of traditional media and that newspa-
pers are a dying breed. This is partly due to
the fact that the readership can get up-to-date
and to-the-minute news online, instead of
waiting for a newspaper the next day report-
ing yesterday’s news.
Since the introduction of Web 2.0 technolo-
gies, traditional media organizations have
been striving to find ways to improve their
online content using Web 2.0 technologies.
The literature supports the idea that tradi-
tional media can find a solution in Web 2.0
(Beam 2008, Chapman 2008, Dallow 2007,
Newmark 2006, Wendland 2003, Yaros
2008). However, traditional media is strug-
gling to find an appropriate online model
for the payment of online content, which is
mostly free of charge.
The free online model only relies on the in-
come from advertisements, which makes for
a very unstable and one-sided financial mod-
el (Isaacson 2009). With the help of Web 2.0,
the content that the media industry in South
Africa offer could be enhanced, and result
in the readership becoming more willing to
pay for online news offerings. South Africa
struggles with enough bandwidth supply,
which hinders innovation (McDonald 2008),
and restricts companies to take advantage of
business opportunities. Journalists need to
adapt in order to reach their readers (Pisani
2006). Web 2.0 has changed the way that
readers perceive what journalists write and
also the way they perceive media in general.
It has changed the culture of their readers.
The business model for journalism is not
working anymore and journalists have to
adapt and learn new applications through
which to reach their readership with original
and customized content (Briggs 2008).
This research operated from the principle
that many challenges still exist, but argue
that a portion of the South African market is
ready for the adoption of Web 2.0 technolo-
gies and its application to create custom con-
tent that would increase the online readership
and add value to news content.
Methods employed
to investigate a
solution
The research methodology applied for the
research included firstly a structured online
questionnaire to ascertain public opinion on
the journalistic use of Web 2.0 technologies.
A total of 1 348 respondents completed
the questionnaire. The data collected from
the questionnaire was analysed through
descriptive, inferential statistical analysis.
Secondly the opinions of four South Afri-
can and international news media experts
were obtained by employing the Delphi tech-
nique. Data analysis for the Delphi technique
was done through theme identification and
descriptive data analysis of the qualitative
data.
Limitations have been recognised with re-
gard to the survey. An over-representation
of men, respondents under the age of 35 and
over 50 as well as whites are reflected in the
survey. Furthermore the survey is limited in
it being collected from a niche market source
namely a financial news subscriber list and
data from a general news site will probably
differ from the data collected in the research
sample.
Neville Lennox
Martie Mearns
Centre for Information and
Knowledge Management
University of Johannesburg
Web 2.0 and the media:
The importance of customized
content for added value
Read all
about it:
Newspapers
dying,
online news
thriving..
read all
about it!
Results derived from the
online questionnaire
From the online survey the preferred news source was
online sources (Figure 1). The online media model is
probably therefore becoming an attractive opportunity.
The trend seen from the survey is supported by Isaacson
(2009). Regardless of a slow decline in newspaper sales,
he states that the media has more readers than ever, on-
line readers. The survey further revealed that newspapers
remain a popular source for news
Online readers indicated the most popular tool to be
search engines, followed by links from online content
(Figure 2). This can be interpreted by news organizations
to start linking their content with other content, adding
value to their information. The results further showed
that the respondents spent more time surfing the internet
than they spent on social media. This creates an op-
portunity for news organizations to make users more
aware of their social media offerings and show them that
the social media contains improved content from what is
provided on their websites.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, the survey found
that readers wanted to see more original content and gen-
eral financial information as opposed to social media like
podcasts and video casts (Figure 3). Respondents indica-
ted a reluctance to use Web 2.0 applications and are look-
ing for more original content and financial data. News
organizations should promote the benefits of social me-
dia as original content and need to educate the readership
on the uses of social media and show them that these
offerings are indeed original content. The data showed
that the younger audiences tended to rank social media
applications higher than the older audience. This creates
an opportunity for news organizations to communicate
the importance of their Web 2.0 offerings and the value
it adds to their content. If the readership is educated ap-
propriately about the added value of these applications as
original content, this might satisfy their needs for more
original content too. By offering a better platform for
financial advice and data, financial news organizations
have a better case to start charging for their content, as it
can add value to investors and people that are watching
the stock markets and are trading in shares or foreign ex-
change.
Demographic profile of online
survey sample & limitations
Male: 81.15%
Female: 18.84%
18-44 years of age: 57%
45-69 years of age: 43%
Race representation
White: 75.45%
Indian/Asian: 11.28%
Black: 7.05%
Coloureds: 5.49%
Recommendations and
conclusions
Traditional news organizations in South Africa have
been struggling to satisfy the needs of their readership
on the Internet. The literature revealed that journal-
ists need to adapt in order to satisfy the needs for cus-
tomised and original content of the readership. With
the benefits of Web 2.0 creating a community that can
share and generate content, news organizations need
to tap into this resource to add value for their reader-
ship. According to Thompson, Strickland and Gamble
(2007), if the customers perceive your product as hav-
ing a better value than that of competitors, they are
more likely to return for more. With a higher perceived
value, customers might be more willing to pay for the
content thus a better case can be made for an online
payment model.
There is a shifting paradigm in the skill sets required
of journalists in the digital era to better serve the read-
ership. Training to provide the required skills set need
to be reviewed and developed. Media companies are
losing some of their control on what stories they want
to show their readership because Web 2.0 technologies,
RSS feeds, blogs and wikis empower users to read
only that which they want to read. Media companies
need to come to grips with releasing some control to
the users, who want to be part of the process of creat-
ing and sharing news.
It is concluded that Web 2.0 applications can add
value to the content created by news organizations
and simultaneously enable communication between a
news organization and its readership. By implementing
the technology of Web 2.0, a platform can be created
on which the readership can create their own content
for sharing and distribution, making them part of the
greater online news community. By doing this, the or-
ganization will create enhanced content that will add
value to their readership, and by adding value to their
readership, they can increase the traffic to their web-
site which could assist in the development of an online
payment model.
References
Beam, M. (2008). The Portal Effect: The Impact of Cus-
tomized Content on News Exposure. Paper presented at
the annual meeting of the International Communication
Association, TBA, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Briggs, M. (2008). The end of journalism as usual. Nie-
man Reports, 44(4): 41-42.
Chapman, C.C. (2008). Making friends on the new me-
dia playground. Communication World, 37(1): 19-21.
Dallow, P. (2007). Mediatising the web: The new modu-
lar extensible media. Journal of Media Practice, 8(3):
341-358.
Isaacson, W. (2009). How to save your newspaper. [On-
line]. Available WWW: http://www.time.com/time/busi-
ness/
article/0,8599,1877191,00.html [Accessed 11 March
2009].
McDonald, L. (2008). How seacom will change SA’s
world. Moneyweb Undictated. [Online]. Available
WWW: http://www.moneyweb.co.za/mw/view/mw/en/
page39?oid=222115&sn=Detail [Accessed 20 March
2009].
Newmark, N. (2006). Community building on the web:
Implications for journalism. Nieman Reports, 36(4): 25-
27.
Pisani, F. (2006). Journalism and Web 2.0. Nieman Re-
ports, 36(4): 42-44.
Shafer, J. 2006. The Incredible Shrinking Newspaper:
available http://www.slate.com/id/2144201 [Accessed 20
July 2010].
Thompson, A.A., Strickland, A.J. & Gamble, J.E.
(2007). Crafting and executing strategy – Text and
Readings. 15th edition. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Wendland, M. (2003). Blogging connects a
columnist to new story ideas. Nieman Reports,
23(3): 94-95.
Yaros, R.A. (2008). Digital natives: Following their lead
on a path to a new journalism. Nieman Reports, 44(4):
13-15.
4.76
3.63
3.47
New Sources
Online Newspapers Magazines
5
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
Information sources for business research
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
4.33
3.64 3.64
3.14
2.73
2.54
General
search
Linksfrom
onlinecon-
Personalnet-
worksoutside
thework
Guidance
fromcol-
Guidancefrom
outsidead-
visors,con-
Guidancefrom
contactsin
onlinecom-
Type of online feature/content
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
Original
content
General
financial
nformation
Personal
finance
Entrepre-
neur
Podcasts
Video
4.17
4.01 3.99
3.76
2.42 2.35
Figure 1: Preferred news sources
Figure 2: Most popular information sources
for business research
Figure 3: Preferred type of online content