The new issue of the Nieman Foundation's Nieman Reports magazine, in another example of old-school journalism reaching the stage of acceptance about what's happening to newspapers and the news business, looks forward to where we might go next. Lots and lots of good reading here, highlighted by a smart, concise prescription from Telegraph.co.uk Digital Editor Edward Roussel, who sums up:
None of this will come easily. It breaks a newspaper culture forged over a 400-year period. For decades now, newspaper newsrooms have centered on “going to press,” which has meant pointing all efforts towards a single deadline that culminates in the publishing of a definitive version of a story. Journalists who’ve spent a lifetime working around this kind of deadline often cannot make the switch to the continuous reporting demanded by Web audiences.
Nor are reporters and editors particularly good at interacting with readers. As long as newspapers have existed, editors have determined the news agenda and then rammed it down readers’ throats. Sure, readers are welcome to send a “letter to the editor.” It may even get published. But typically most editors have little interest in an ongoing dialogue. Linking to competitors’ news services certainly doesn’t come naturally to newspaper editors either, whereas it’s seen as a sign of sophistication on the Web. Then there’s the lack of familiarity with multimedia and the art of stitching together text, video, photos, maps and graphics.
And Roussel offers a glimpse of hope for the traditionalists:
Still, the dominant newspapers have a huge advantage over start-up news operations: They are trusted brands at a time when the proliferation of news sources has made trust a premium for readers and advertisers alike. That’s a good springboard for success. But time is running out.
Essential reading. Similarly, from another corner of the world of academia: Wharton business school professors make some tough suggestions for the news industry.
Update: Still more good stuff, from Matt Welch at Reason magazine. Aside from the over-the-top last rites for the New York Times, this has been quite a week for newspaper industry punditry. Now we have to start turning the smart talk into action.
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