FYI: The future of news(papers)

The future of news(papers)
News organizations will survive, even if newspapers don’t
By Terry Field, Chair, Journalism Program
Mount Royal College
There is little doubt that the future of the newspaper that comes to the door in the mornings is limited. There’s been ample evidence of that recently, including widely reported closures (Rocky Mountain News), and the elimination or reduction of print editions  (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Christian Science Monitor).

The new printing press is the Internet and it will increasingly become the way in which news is presented: News will increasingly become a multi-media product because the ‘net allows for that. The newspaper as we have known it might survive in smaller communities, and it might yet survive in large cities in some form . . . more on that in a moment.

First some thoughts on what has brought us to this discussion. Change is always multi-faceted and there are a number of circumstances driving this change.

Technology
Technology is about packaging and delivery, and digital technology has irrevocably changed how this is done.
Digital technology and its display case – the Internet – is as revolutionary as the printing press, the telegraph, radio and TV; in part because the ‘net is all those things combined. It also permits and  encourages interaction, and moves at the speed of life. The traditional newspaper format cannot match the look, nor the pace, nor the volume and range of choice found on the ‘net. Business Models

Newspapers need to earn money, and the model of advertisers paying for space to reach a specific audience is likely not sustainable. There are just too many other ways for advertisers to reach people these days.

Combining questions about the model with the current state of the economy, and you have two aspects of a perfect storm of economic insecurity. Now combine all that with the splintering or fragmenting of mass audiences into smaller groups, and you have some severe challenges to overcome. Either newspapers find a new model or many will go under.

Any new model is going to be web-focused, and will likely involve user pay elements.
Audience Attitudes/Expectations

News consumers have always been at best ambivalent about the news media, but we could suggest that they were willing to accept the news presented to them, or – less generously – that they were captive to one-way (not interactive) presentation models. In other words, they needed traditional media such as newspapers even if they were not always satisfied with them.

That too has changed. News consumers are becoming increasingly acculturated to blogs and social networking sites, to news survey sites such as Google and to online specialty publications.  his range of options leaves less and less room for traditional media.

The Future
The newspaper as we have known it will not disappear completely in the next few years and, in fact, some types or forms of newspapers could exist for some time to come. Ultimately, more major dailies may move to an entirely online presence; others might move to a blended delivery, providing print editions Wednesdays and Saturdays (days arbitrarily chosen), and online the rest of the time.
Large dailies might instead elect to offer a different kind of print product entirely, such as a range of special topic magazines that supplement the daily focus of the ‘net. Large city community or special interest newspapers have lower overhead costs and are already published weekly or monthly, and are often picked up at coffee shops by people who have an interest in the topics covered. This ‘market’ will likely remain constant. Small town newspapers might survive the longest because, in most cases, they serve a very specific audience and they are often the only news organization providing local coverage. Over time, however, the internet will catch up with them as well.
Newspapers aside, the larger and perhaps more important question is whether professionally-constituted news organizations will survive in sufficient scale to provide a high-quality news product. Apart from the word internet, the next most important word from a content perspective for news providers is differentiation. News organizations will have to focus more in the future on providing material that is unique to them, or specialized in some way.
They could accomplish this by becoming more profoundly local. To be the best at reporting on a specific industry might be another form. But to do so will require the maintenance of professional news teams to organize, supervise and produce at least some of this content.
In the end, a range of issues and circumstance such as those listed and others will define the future of newspapers and news organizations. Adaptation is a requirement, but I am optimistic that the demand will continue to exist for professionally written and packaged news and information material.
News organizations will find a way to have their product supported financially and they will survive, even if newspapers do not.
Terry Field has worked in print and broadcast media, and he is currently the chair of the journalism major in the Bachelor of Communication program at Mount Royal College, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
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