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- Chapter 2 - NEWSPAPERS IN CRISIS: HOW NEWSROOMS WHEEL THROUGH HARD TIMES
2008 was one of the toughest years to date for newsprint, especially in North America and Europe. With the added woes of an international financial crisis and fears of a worldwide recession, many newsrooms had to wade through hard times, cost cuts and waves of layoffs. As celebrity news soars and well-researched investigative pieces flounder, both the public and journalists worry about newspapers’ ability to uphold their roles as watchdogs. But these troubled times for newspapers are also giving them the opportunity to rethink and restructure their organization – drastically – in an effort to adapt to the digital age.
ARTICLES
NEWSROOM CUTBACKS ARE NOT AN INVESTMENT FOR THE FUTURE
With the waves of layoffs and reductions in content, many are worried this will lead to decreased editorial quality and credibility, and ultimately to worsening newspapers’ economic woes. In July, a survey carried out by the Project for Excellence in Journalism revealed how newsroom cost cuts had hindered newspaper quality and editorial standards. On the other hand, it also outlined positive changes in newsrooms as they adapt to the Web.
THE END OF ‘HARD NEWS’ AND INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM: THE RISE OF ‘SOFT NEWS’ AND CELEBRITIES
In March 2008, the Associated Press announced plans to increase its celebrity and entertainment coverage and hire an additional 21 employees to be spread across Los Angeles, New York, and London. The AP insisted that the reinforced coverage was not about gossip, unnamed sources and innuendo, but simply made good business sense due to the high demand for that type of content.
The irony was that at about the same time, major newspapers across the US including USA Today and the Boston Globe had to give up on covering the US presidential candidates on a day-to-day basis, instead resorting to the wire reports from AP and Reuters.
NON-PROFIT JOURNALISM AND THE ‘POYNTER’ BUSINESS MODEL With newspapers facing financial woes, some wonder whether a non-profit model is the best solution for journalism – especially for expensive investigative journalism.
Several non-profit start-ups have been launched in the US. In late 2007, former Minnesota Star Tribune editor Joel Kramer took his print expertise and moved it online with the launch of the non-profit Minnpost.com. Former Wall Street Journal editor Paul Steiger did something similar with ProPublica, focusing on investigative journalism. The Voice of San Diego, and other similar sites around the US, are making a name for themselves as "serious, original reporting by professional journalists," with the New York Times describing the sites as "stand out" amongst online news sites.
Can Newspapers Do More With Less? They Can Especially If They Change Their New Media Business Model
by Philip M. Stone, Stone & Associates
Readers of this annual report don’t really need chapter and verse on what newspapers are doing these days to maintain margins, or even stay in business -- reducing print days, a few going all-online, they’re consolidating print and distribution functions, sharing one another’s editorial copy, putting their prime property up for sale, conducting sale-leasebacks on their buildings, selling non-core investments, even making staff take one-week unpaid furloughs …the list goes on and on.
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