|
|
 |
TechScout: The Next Generation News Organization - A Conversation with Andrew Donohue
 Many believe the disruption in the newspaper business model will lead to innovation. But what will that innovation look like? To be sure, one of the creative concepts to emerge is that of the small, local, online newspapers sprouting up all over the country. What makes these not-for-profit news organizations unique is not just the way they generate revenue, but their editorial perspective. In this interview, Andrew Donohue, editor of voiceofsandiego.org, shares how the publication started and his vision for the future of news.
What was the impetus for creating voiceofsandiego?
There was a general atrophy in the San Diego media world. The Union and the Tribune merged in the early '90s. Then the LA Times, which had a full San Diego Bureau and San Diego edition, left town. So we went from having three daily newspapers competing for stories to one newspaper very quickly.
Our main founder, Buzz Woolley, was the son of a reporter. He saw the atrophy of media as a weakness in a civil society. As a retired venture capitalist and philanthropist, he partnered with Neil Morgan, a grandfather in San Diego journalism. Together they decided to create a new business model for news. This would be an online newspaper supporting a vision of public service with investigative reporting at the core of the institution. »more
TechScout: The Mobile Advertising Challenge - How One Company May Portend Things to Come
How DOES Twitter make money? I hear that refrain constantly so I'm sure you wonder about it too. When I interviewed one of the founders a few years ago for the Media Management Center, Twitter was a fledging service popular with only early adopters in the Valley. When I asked Biz Stone how they would monetize the service, he told me they had a few models in mind. Now, when Twitter has fully bloomed - even Larry King is twittering! - we still see no advertising. We continue to wonder. One thing is sure: Making money on mobile advertising is tricky. »more
TechScout: History Lessons - Can the Past Help Us Create a New Business Model for News?
Some say history can be thought of as a spiral. As the spiral climbs ever higher, we deal with the same problems, but in a slightly different context. Can that experience be true with the news industry? If so, what can we learn from that history? Andrew Odlyzko is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Minnesota and the founding director of the Digital Technology Center. »more
TechScout: Mobile Ahead - How Your Digital Footprint Will Change the Media Landscape
From the moment you wake up to when you go to sleep at night, who is your most intimate companion? Well, I'll give you a hint. It's not your partner or spouse. It's not your Chihuahua either. It's probably your mobile phone. Not only does your device bring you immediate access to your social circle whenever you want it, but when its GPS is enabled, it reveals intimate secrets about you and your behaviors. »more
TechScout: What If News Searched for You?
Imagine for a moment that you didn't search for news, but news searched for you. The news knew your mood. What you wanted and needed to know showed up on your television, your netbook, your computer and, especially, your mobile device. If you had trouble getting out of bed, you might get an inspirational story on the radio. If you were interested in local politics, you would be served a story on your handheld about the debate on affordable housing. About 4 in the afternoon, your computer would suggest a dinner idea and, when you came home from a hard day, the television would provide three options for a movie on-demand. »more
TechScout: Using Technology to Enhance Journalism’s Future
Less investigative reporting? Less high-quality news available? These are frequently heard concerns as news organizations struggle for survival. But what if the disruption in the market for news and information could lead to fresh, new media products that have yet to be imagined? This is the view of Dr. Irfan Essa, Professor in the College of Computing at Georgia Tech. Essa works in the areas of human computer interaction and artificial intelligence and coined the term "computational journalism." »more
»All
posts | MMCDigiMe
RSS feed
|
|
The many changes in the media are forcing media companies to push for efficiencies and innovation at the same time.
To meet that need, the Media Management Center has created an intense, innovation-focused two-week program called the Media Executive Leadership Program. It will be offered July 20-31 at the James Allen Center on the Northwestern campus.
In the middle of a devastating media recession where many newspapers and television stations are thinking only of survival, it is easy to overlook the fact that tomorrow's media organizations are being built today.
We already know some media companies will not survive. Others will so damage their brands that their future viability will be in question. Those that do survive will face a changed world, filled with great pitfalls, but also great opportunity.
In this unprecedented environment, media organizations must make one of two choices. The first is to do nothing - business as usual. Organizations that make this choice allow events and competitors to shape their destiny. Staying the same means giving up the opportunity to lead. What will be the result? Only time will tell.
The second choice is to apply proven strategic thinking and innovative ideas to traditional media brands. This approach involves moving beyond current cultural, platform and sales limitations. This second approach requires highly skilled change agents willing to use fresh thinking and the latest ideas to advance organizations into an important new world. If done right, the result will be a dynamic, forward thinking organization with the potential for incredible profits.
For almost two decades Northwestern University's Media Management Center has taken a leadership role in creating the future of media. With the resources of both the Kellogg School of Management and Medill, the Center occupies a unique role in international media development. Part research organization, part think tank, part educator, the Media Management Center is the clear leader in future media thinking.
We know the public's demand for news and information continues to grow. Some media organizations will take great advantage of this growth. They will build great brands that also result in great profits. If you are a change agent, willing to look at the world in a fresh way, then the Media Executive Leadership Program is for you.
Please download and return this application by July 6. Cost is $11,400, which covers tuition, materials, food, lodging and activity expenses - everything but transportation to Evanston.
|
|
|
 |
The Associated Press tries courtside crowdsourcing Sotomayor coverage
Nieman Journalism Lab - "As news organizations roll out their coverage plans for Sonia Sotomayor’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearings next week, some interesting innovation is coming from a player some critics have labeled stodgy: the Associated Press." »more
European Publishers Call on E.U. to Protect Copyright
New York Times - "Leading European newspaper and magazine publishers on Thursday called on the European Commission to strengthen copyright protection as a way to lay the groundwork for new ways to generate revenue online." »more
How Useful (and Usable) is Your Site?
Recovering Journalist - "Every editor and publisher should spend some time trying to use their Web site the same ways that readers do, to truly find out what the user experience is for a site visitor. I think they'd get a jarring education in just how crappy and hard to use many (most? all?) newspaper sites are." »more
Newspapers: Stop Whining and Act
ClickZ - "As they say in Las Vegas, if you don't like the game, don't play. Don't start complaining about the rules of a game that you started playing long ago." »more
New York Times Considers $5 Monthly Web-Access Fee
Bloomberg - "New York Times Co. said in a survey of print subscribers that it’s considering a $5 monthly fee for access to its namesake newspaper’s Web site." »more
Mobile Phones with Augmented Reality Applications Could Change News Experience
Poynter - "A new bleeding-edge technology is being developed using advanced mobile phones that could drastically affect the way audiences interact with news and local information." »more
What if the business model for news ain't broke?
Journalism.co.uk - "In what may feel like a twist of logic too far, there are a growing number of non-media companies who are adopting the Fourth Estate's digital business model. That's the ad-funded, free-to-the-consumer model." »more
News Corp.'s Murdoch to Hold Onto Cash Until Recovery
Bloomberg - "News Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rupert Murdoch said the media company will wait until the economy recovers before considering acquisitions, preserving its more than $6 billion in cash in the recession." »more
NBC Reveals Displeasure as U.S.O.C. Unveils Plan
New York Times - "The head of NBC Sports said Thursday that he broke off talks in April about combining the Olympic channel that it partly owns with the one being planned by the United States Olympic Committee." »more
With ad revenue up 35%, Gawker Media returns to pageview bonuses and plans 'checkbook journalism'
Nieman Journalism Lab - "Eight months ago, Gawker Media publisher Nick Denton was predicting a 40-percent drop in U.S. advertising and paring back accordingly: He laid off 19 writers and, by selling some blogs and consolidating others, shrank his blogging empire from 13 titles to 9." »more
Media Talk Live: The digital future
guardian.co.uk - "Will there be any newspapers left in five years' time? Is the age of the free internet over? And why has Twitter taken over the world?" »more
Analysts: Gannett's Q2 Newspaper Advertising Revenue Expected to Fall 32%
Editor & Publisher - "Signs of a turnaround in Q2 are highly unlikely for the Gannett Co., wrote J.P. Morgan analysts Alexia Quadrani and Monica DiCenso in a note issued this afternoon." »more
Warner Bros. Busts Digital, Traditional Silos With 'One Eskimo' Project
paidContent - "Big media companies talk about 'breaking the silos' all the time, but often, it remains just that - talk - while content gets incubated and marketed by separate digital and traditional creative teams." »more
AP Works Toward Universal Online News Format
MediaPost - "The Associated Press, along with fellow non-profit The Media Standards Trust, on Friday unveiled a digital news "microformat" to effectively encapsulate the content and key meta-data of every news story online." »more
Broadcasters: What Business Are You Really in?
Ad Age - "A common adage in business schools today is that the railroad companies failed because they didn't realize they were in the transportation business, not the railroad business." »more
"Nobody 'owns' news - we were never meant to"
Journalism.co.uk - "Who owns information? It's been the issue at the forefront of my mind during the first week of my website, which started with uniformly positive emails from people - apart from one from the Evening Post." »more
»More Media Noted | Media Noted
RSS feed
|
|
|
