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 - Chapter 5 -
PURE PLAYERS AND PERSONALIZED NEWS: THE END OF MASS MEDIA?
INTRODUCTION
As the long-term future of print newspapers across North America and Europe becomes more uncertain due to declining advertising revenues and increasing production costs, many newspaper insiders are looking towards the potential viability of online-only ventures. In past years, a wide array of pure online players have emerged in the news landscape, from basic news headline aggregators to elaborate citizen journalism platforms, to non-profit news sites, professional-amateur initiatives launched by former newspaper editors, and even print newspapers moving to Web-only. For traditional media and newspapers however, the question remains: how can they adapt to these new, leaner, production and distribution models, while upholding their editorial quality and professional standards?
 THE NEW YORK TIME FORAYS INTO NICHE CONTENT WITH BLOGS
General news dailies and news organizations may have increased their niche content, but not at the expense of their traditional coverage, instead creating topic-focused websites and specialized blogs.
In May, The New York Times announced the launch of its Rings blog dedicated to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Rings not only covered the actual Olympics, but also the social, political and economic issues leading up to the event.
FOCUS: WHAT MADE THE HUFFINGTON POST SO SUCCESSFUL?
SThe Huffington Post was a runaway success in 2008. With 8 million readers during the US election campaign, it is now the most 'linked-to' blog on the Web and is valued at up to $200million. It only employs around 50 staff, just a handful of which are editorial, and gets the bulk of its content through invited contributors and readers. To do so much with so little is an impressive feat indeed.
CONCLUSION
The BBC Customisable Homepage: giving the audience what it wants
In the digital age, readers getting what they want, when they want it is the norm. Search engines immediately list information demanded by users. RSS feeds syndicate content of users’ desire. Online shops sell targeted wares with a few clicks of the mouse. Following the customised news trend, news organisations such as the New York Times and online giants such as Google have begun personalised pages of their own in an effort to give users what they want, when they want it while keeping those users on the companies’ respective websites. Perhaps the most ambitious ‘customisable’ news project, however, comes from the British Broadcast Company, which leaves the content and informational hierarchy of its homepage almost entirely to the whim of users.
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