Joe

Nine Questions for News Media

There might be some other factors be of relevance as well.
For the consumers of media and news it might not be just
matter of online or in print, but their decisions focus on some
other aspects.
For instance, an articel in the UK Guardian looked at how
newspapers had changed since 1984. It begins:
Papers went big on foreign news and story counts were high, but celebrities, features and columnists were a rare commodity

How did readers know what to think in 1984? Once you get over the minuscule, blurred pictures and the lack of colour, the first thing that strikes you about the newspapers of that year is the paucity of opinionated columnists. The finger-jabbing, red-faced anger of today's commentariat, the passionate, omniscient certainty with which they declare opinions, scarcely existed 25 years ago ...
www.guardian.co.uk/med...
By coincidence that article might identify ONE reason why
so many newspaper readers are gone, or are about to
vanish, cancel a subscription eventually.
By and large the general public has not much respect for
the media. And that debate could in some cases be the
last debate a newspaper is involving its readers before
joining the list of folded newspapers or at least some
more layoffs are necessary.

News Corp. Beats Estimates in First Quarter, Also Up from 2009

With all due respect, but one can't help the feeling that most
media and ad related reports are written by sleepwalkers.
If one looks for instance at the narrow margins most of them
already operate and takes just as one factor the presently
beginning price war of retailers - well before Xmas - into
consideration, the possible "shock" following in January / February when ad budgets are "adjusted" and "reset" is not so difficult to anticipate. It takes very little and operating income turns into a operating loss. Not just for News Corps, but in many other
cases as well.

Top 10 Print Media Websites - August 2009

Not in order to ridicule or "offset" the article, but for whatever
(ie. general interest) reasons, a site exists dealing with the deaths of newspapers, the "newspaperdeathwatch":
www.newspaperdeathwatc.../

and since it is weekend here an old advertisement from newspapers for students to become reporters. It was made about 1940 and has the same quality as many old movies. It's entertaining by coincidence:
www.youtube.com/watch?...

Could News Corp Become a Victim of New Media?

The article is indeed a bit flip flopping in the conclusion. However,
the data coming with it is nicely presented and useful.
Whether the media industry is in a state of shock or, as is often
critically mentioned, in a state of mental rigor mortis due to self-
chosen and well practiced cognitive dissonance and ignorance is
another question.
What has changed dramatically are the personal economic
circumstances of a larger part of the populations all over the place. For instance foreclosures and cancelled credit cards
(because maxed out) were practically unknown in 2004 or 2005.
Not to mention jobs lost and businesses / firms closed.
In single cases this means a newspaper subscribers' address
is unknown, he was "moved" out. And this means at the same
a TV viewer is now somewhere else, in changed circumstances.
And so on.
Not to forget, ironically speaking, the habit of the media, the
ad sales strategy, to sell a specific region, which actually has a
median income of $ 24 000,- for $ 100 000,- to the advertising
clients. Now that's a bit exaggerated but so far from "reality".
Eventually the various - and notorious - gangs of facts have
their say, turn out to be the "force majeur", having the last word.
That's just some critical aspects, of course.

How the Link Economy Benefits Reuters

And maybe something is appealing to visitors of Reuters:
they are not into punditry and commenting, but into news.
That's probably something for the financial prudent, those who
take matters seriously if necessary.
An article in the UK Guardian compared the current papers to
what the papers were like in 1984:
practically no commentariat, no angry finger jabber, much calmer,
it was news mostly. As many are sorting out their media
consumption now, Reuters could be what they are looking for.
www.guardian.co.uk/med...

Murdoch Plans to Charge for News Corp. Content, But Who's Going to Pay?

There is possibly a bigger difference between WSJ readers
and the tabloid market. That's really two pair of shoes.
The tabloid part of News Corp is btw. facing problems arising
from the hacking scandal and substantial libel payments.
(UK adjudication is different from that in the US: crucial in such
cases - no malicious intent has to be proven by those becoming
victims of libel.)
edition.cnn.com/2009/W...
And anyhow: UK tabloids (news corps included) are paying
out damages every so often, almost every other week. That
makes claims of quality journalism a joke and preposterous.
Not to mention that News Corp is in the mass market business,
lots of its news business is designed for those lower down the
ladder. They might react different to those plans than Murdoch
likes ever since these people have by necessity to mind the
pennies and cents.

Newspaper Self-Cannibalization Datapoint of the Day

Sorry, I made a mistake and linked to Jack Shafer twice instead
of linking to the mentioned blog:
socratesbooks.blogspot...

Newspaper Self-Cannibalization Datapoint of the Day

And it looks like that the sins of the past are beginning to catch up
with the newspapers. Here an older article by Jack Shafer:
Ghost readers
www.slate.com/id/2105344/
And then there is the very interesting pricing strategy of the
newspaper for their ads. Here a (European) blog mentioning the
case of the Rocky Mountain News that eventually folded - they
were very much into "ad rates up circulation down" (via the link
in the article one can access the original article detailing the
prices as well as quoting businesses and how they really
advertise, calculate and consider whatever (there are not so
many articles to that, unfortunately):
www.slate.com/id/2105344/

And, to make matters worse, ironically speaking:
AP, the agency, recently ranted about stealing content.
Lets have a look at the AP site:
www.ap.org/
and a look at Reuters, who are not pursuing such a policy:
www.reuters.com/

My opinion, guess, after landing at Reuters by comparing to
others is that the newspaper crisis and other such crisis is
not the end. Some are looking a bit silly actually. And who will
win, get through nicely is not so difficult to guess.

CNBC Viewership Down 28%

And probably, rather late, insights that can be gained for instance
from the one popular Peter Schiff, likely to contribute a bit to the decline in viewers. It makes in any case sense for learning and considering the experience (bad for too many who lost a lot).
www.youtube.com/watch?...

The Death of Snail Mail and Sunday Papers

Just found a 2006 article by Jack Shafer, candid and funny as
always, gave way back support to that article:
Chronicle of the newspaper death foretold
The newspaper industry knew it was doomed 30 years ago
www.slate.com/id/21546.../

Scattering Television's Upfront Ad Market

Not in order to make nonsense of the good to read article:
somebody posted a funny song parody on YouTube (American Pie)
about the media in troubles. It is very well done, good performance.
"buy buy those big upfront buys..." (somehow fitting to the article)
youtube.com/watch?v=6C...

When News People Lose Common Sense

The media / newspapers are having another problem. Their past
pricing strategies are catching up with them. Good point about
entitlement.
When using "ad rates up circulation down" as searchword Google turns up a 2004 article at the first page. It tells of the CO. papers, Rocky Mountain News included, of circulation down 11,6% and ad rates up 189%.
Unsurprisingly, the RMN went bust four years later, a long time
though, considering all that. It is an extreme example , similar pricing strategies (attempts of maximum ad revenue) can be found all over the world, actually.
It is both funny and scandalous how media are now doing all
they can, I am sure they are attempting black magic out of
Harry Potter movies, to disable the general public from being
unable to even the simplest business calculation.

Newspaper Circ Numbers: Talking Quantity and "Quality"

It is possible to gain an interesting idea of the the pricing strategy
of newspapers by googling:
+ad rates up circulation down+

A whole lot comes up, the first article dating from 2004, offering some clue:
Daily blues: Ad rates up, circulation down
(two Colorado papers)
"...the combined circulation at the two dailies was 483,740 copies ...
...That's down 11.6 percent from the same period the previous year.
...the price for a quarter-page ad to run in both papers has gone up from about $8,300 to $18,400 ..."
denver.bizjournals.com...

That is just one article. The papers for a long time pursued this
strategy. And considering that advertisers have, particularly since
the credit-crunch became effective, to be more cost-minded then
ever, it is no wonder the papers are running into trouble eventually.

Newspaper Circulation: WSJ, USA Today Manage To Buck Trend

If this trend would accelerate, one possible explanation why people
change their media habits and consumption might be have to do
with this (in editor & publisher):
Where Was Media When Sub-Prime Disaster Unfolded?
If we were long on the edge of "disaster" with a "financial nuclear winter" waiting in the wings, why were American news consumers among the last to know?
"...A New York Times columnist even admitted that experts and advocates first warned them in 2001 that predatory lending practices were devastating poor neighborhoods but the issue was not covered in any depth for five years. ...
...the (NY) Times business section ... and the Washington Post
... stories explained that the downfall was sparked by the use of overly complex securities designed not to be understood. ..."
www.editorandpublisher...

(Now: who on earth needs papers that manage not to understand
on the highest (media) level; ironically speaking: some sort of "electrically lit barbarians" ?)