The approach and strategies of these broadsheets are to disseminate news and to do it accurately. Although the running of a newspaper has always been a business, the strategy behind it is somewhat archaic. Money is often poured into papers in hopes of boosting circulation, thereby boosting profits. However, in the recent years, powerhouses like the Times are beginning to realize that greater circulation numbers will lead to better profits, but also that there is immense room for improvement if compromise is made via advertising or making the paper more eye friendly. Many newspapers feel that this would be a compromise of their integrity, as papers have been traditionally black and white for so long. However, revenue from circulation is steadily declining, and these papers must find another source of funding and profits in order to survive. New different sources of marketing must be explored rather than relying on circulation numbers alone. If this is not done we will begin to see an extinction of newsprint. We live in an era where attention spans have gotten shorter and shorter, and people are looking for more in their news sources. To fight this wave would be futile.
The death of the newspaper was sparked by the rise in news media transferred from internet resources. Unlike the audience for newsprint media, the audience for the internet as the news medium of choice is relatively younger. In a recent study, the Washington Post found that people ages 18-24 would not even accept a Post subscription even if it were free. The main reason for this is that younger people don’t want to deal with the immense amounts of paper. Add to this the environmental awareness and a “save the trees mentality”, as well as a generation looking for all things easy and convenient and you will see that this trend is not just a trend anymore but now a force to be reckoned with.
Unlike newsprint, the strategy and approach do not play a big part in the selection of what the audience reads. Online news really has no format or approach towards a story; rather it depends on content to drive the public interest. It gives its audience the ability to pick and choose headlines that are important to them, that pique their interest and matters to them. It basically is a way to read a newspaper that is tailored to you. Unlike in newsprint, online news sources do not have to hold onto a physical sheet, they do not have to flip pages to read and find articles. Everything related to the story is there and can be read in one fell swoop. How do they survive then without this open ended format? Survival of these online news sources is mainly through advertisements. Sidebars that run ads sometimes relating to the article, sometimes unrelated, have become major sources of funding. Revenue is also drawn from the ability to track data through click-stream technology. This kind of data captures a reader’s habits and what they are interested in. It basically follows the reader’s progress through a site to see what they click on and then this information is sold to companies that are would like to market to this demographic. Also with the rise in hand held PDA’s the proliferation of online news services is immense. Revenues from monthly service subscriptions, or news feeds will also help to grow this business.
Although online news sources have much strength it must be remembered that without its typeface, hard copy cousin, the newspaper, it would surely not survive. Although it has the greater share of readership in the younger generations, it would have nothing to run and display, were it not for the stories generated by the staffers at the Times and Journal and such papers. There is a symbiotic relationship between the two, and if newspapers can learn to adjust their output to their readership, rather than offering generic papers to everyone it may be able to use this relationship to further its own objective and profit margins. There are opportunities out there to be taken advantage of by both sources.
“The New York Times has stature and a position of journalistic authority greater than any news organization in the world.”, but will this be enough to sustain its growth into the future? The answer here is most likely, no unless they make concessions to include the digital world. This answer not only applies to the Times but to other newsprint media as well. The outlook for newsprint does not look great, which is why The Times and The Journal and many other newspapers have started their own internet websites that transfer news via the net. These new digital formats are proving to be a very good move. The New York Times site is consistently in the top ten sites hit daily. The services offered there are also helping to move the paper forward. The archival of stories help lure younger demographics, if not through interest alone, than through academic pursuits. Exposing students to old fashioned news papers through new wave technology may sensitize them to newsprint as they get older thereby creating a market for themselves with these reader, who traditionally begin to subscribe to newspapers in their thirties.
The internet is here to stay. There is no way to get around that, no way to dispel news media from online sources. Ten years from now this sector will continue to grow and change. Generations born into the internet era will not stray far from it. In order for print media to survive it has to be able to use this to its advantage. They are off to a good start by embracing the online news delivery, now if only they can find a way to bring that delivery full circle. Perhaps their best bet at this time is to market themselves strongly on the internet and trust that as the new generations’ transition into their 30’s, and begin to subscribe to newspapers that their brand will have stuck. Digital media coverage has spurred the growth of different markets for information; however this does not sound the death knell for traditional media avenues. It is merely a wakeup call right now, but whether the industry wakes up or hits snooze is yet to be seen.
Online Publishing Association- “” February 12, 2005
Bianco, Anthony, “The Future of The New York Times”, Business Week , January 17, 2005
