Lecture slides for talk to the Northeast Massachusetts Regional Library System on Nov. 12, 2009. Updated for Reinventing the News students in January 2011.
1. What’s next for the news?
The future of journalism
in an uncertain age
2. A golden age comes to an end
• From 1830s to 2005,
newspapers enjoyed
advertising dominance
3. A golden age comes to an end
• From 1830s to 2005,
newspapers enjoyed
advertising dominance
• A.J. Liebling on
monopoly papers:
“good, better, bestest”
4. A golden age comes to an end
• From 1830s to 2005,
newspapers enjoyed
advertising dominance
• A.J. Liebling on
monopoly papers:
“good, better, bestest”
• Philip Meyer: The Lords
of Savoy no longer
control the toll gate
5. Blowing up the old model
• Vertical destruction
– Technology and social
change have wiped out
advertising revenues
6. Blowing up the old model
• Vertical destruction
– Technology and social
change have wiped out
advertising revenues
– Craigslist, Monster.com,
and the like have all but
killed classifieds
7. Blowing up the old model
• Vertical destruction
– Technology and social
change have wiped out
advertising revenues
– Craigslist, Monster.com,
and the like have all but
killed classifieds
– Vibrant downtowns have
given way to Wal-Mart
and other big-box stores
8. Blowing up the old model
• Vertical destruction
• Horizontal destruction
– Everything is available,
so readers look beyond
their local paper for
national and foreign
news
9. Blowing up the old model
• Vertical destruction
• Horizontal destruction
– Everything is available,
so readers look beyond
their local paper for
national and foreign
news
– Specialty websites are
serving niche audiences
for sports, gossip,
politics, and more
10. The decline of civic engagement
• In “Bowling Alone,”
Putnam tied civic life to
newspaper reading
11. The decline of civic engagement
• In “Bowling Alone,”
Putnam tied civic life to
newspaper reading
• If the public doesn’t
care, then journalism
is endangered
12. The decline of civic engagement
• In “Bowling Alone,”
Putnam tied civic life to
newspaper reading
• If the public doesn’t
care, then journalism
is endangered
• News organizations
must create their own
involved publics
13. Building a news constituency
• Civic journalism sought
to involve the public in
coverage of issues
14. Building a news constituency
• Civic journalism sought
to involve the public in
coverage of issues
• Citizen journalism and
blogging were the next
steps in the conversation
15. Building a news constituency
• Civic journalism sought
to involve the public in
coverage of issues
• Citizen journalism and
blogging were the next
steps in the conversation
• Limits to citizen media:
Whom can we trust in
the post-newspaper age?
17. A possible model for the future
• New Haven Independent
is non-profit, online-only,
supported by grants
18. A possible model for the future
• New Haven Independent
is non-profit, online-only,
supported by grants
• Staff of four travels city
on bikes with cheap
cameras and notebooks
19. A possible model for the future
• New Haven Independent
is non-profit, online-only,
supported by grants
• Staff of four travels city
on bikes with cheap
cameras and notebooks
• Focus on city life,
moderated comments
create new public square
20. Strengths of the Independent
• Not reliant on a
shrinking base
of advertising
21. Strengths of the Independent
• Not reliant on a
shrinking base
of advertising
• Online-only format
means costs are low
22. Strengths of the Independent
• Not reliant on a
shrinking base
of advertising
• Online-only format
means costs are low
• Hyperlocal content and
two-way conversation
build civic engagement
23. Weaknesses of the Independent
• Small readership
compared to city’s daily,
the New Haven Register
24. Weaknesses of the Independent
• Small readership
compared to city’s daily,
the New Haven Register
• Uncertain funding in
future years
25. Weaknesses of the Independent
• Small readership
compared to city’s daily,
the New Haven Register
• Uncertain funding in
future years
• Few resources to do
in-depth investigative
journalism
26. Other projects to watch
• Non-profit ProPublica
offers a new way of
funding investigations
27. Other projects to watch
• Non-profit ProPublica
offers a new way of
funding investigations
• Global Voices curates
the international
blogosphere
28. Other projects to watch
• Non-profit ProPublica
offers a new way of
funding investigations
• Global Voices curates
the international
blogosphere
• GlobalPost seeks to fill
gap left by newspapers
and television networks
30. The Globe’s struggle for survival
• Major metropolitan
newspapers are caught
between two trends
31. The Globe’s struggle for survival
• Major metropolitan
newspapers are caught
between two trends
– Too small to compete
with The New York
Times and The
Washington Post (and
others) on national and
foreign coverage
32. The Globe’s struggle for survival
• Major metropolitan
newspapers are caught
between two trends
– Too big to compete with
community weeklies and
small dailies on
hyperlocal coverage
33. The Globe’s struggle for survival
• Major metropolitan
newspapers are caught
between two trends
• The Globe has
reinvented itself as a
local and regional paper
34. The Globe’s struggle for survival
• Major metropolitan
newspapers are caught
between two trends
• The Globe has
reinvented itself as a
local and regional paper
• Ad losses and a tide of
red ink have given way
to modest success
36. A multifaceted strategy
• Charge as much for the
print edition as the
market will bear
• Save Sunday paper
while shifting to
weekday e-delivery
37. A multifaceted strategy
• Charge as much for the
print edition as the
market will bear
• Save Sunday paper
while shifting to
weekday e-delivery
• Supplement paid
BostonGlobe.com with
free Boston.com site
39. The hub-and-spokes model
• Tech site BetaBoston
drives readers to and
from the Globe
• RadioBDC extends the
brand to non-readers
40. The hub-and-spokes model
• Tech site BetaBoston
drives readers to and
from the Globe
• RadioBDC extends the
brand to non-readers
• Crux covers the
Catholic Church and
is aimed at the English-speaking
world
42. A time for optimism
• For news consumers,
more quality choices
than ever before
43. A time for optimism
• For news consumers,
more quality choices
than ever before
• Challenge is to match
journalism with revenue
and civic engagement
44. A time for optimism
• For news consumers,
more quality choices
than ever before
• Challenge is to match
journalism with revenue
and civic engagement
• Today’s young
journalists will define
the future for all of us
45. (cc) 2009 and 2014 by Dan Kennedy
Creative Commons license can be found at
www.dankennedy.net
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Northeastern University
Boston, MA 02115