Tuesday, November 01, 2005
More on Newspapers
Are newspapers worried about their future? You betcha. Reporters and publishers are starting to ask questions about why they report the way they do and stories they carry. Questions are being prompted by the fact that 2005 is one of the worst years since the last recession.
Why should PR practitioners worry about newspapers? Because newspapers still have the largest reportorial staffs, other than wire services. And newspapers, despite recent lapses in accuracy, are still better at reporting.
It is likely, as we have written before, that smaller papers will end up as online only with community journalism at their core. Larger papers won't operate that way, but they need to find an economic model that works or shrink their news holes, which won't help their circulation or viability.
I can't say I'm sorry that newspapers are having so much trouble. They needed to be shaken loose from tradition. They need to rethink their purpose and what their readers want.
Why should PR practitioners worry about newspapers? Because newspapers still have the largest reportorial staffs, other than wire services. And newspapers, despite recent lapses in accuracy, are still better at reporting.
It is likely, as we have written before, that smaller papers will end up as online only with community journalism at their core. Larger papers won't operate that way, but they need to find an economic model that works or shrink their news holes, which won't help their circulation or viability.
I can't say I'm sorry that newspapers are having so much trouble. They needed to be shaken loose from tradition. They need to rethink their purpose and what their readers want.
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