Amid what up until recently was considered a newsprint crisis, commercial TV stations in Norway take drastic budget measures, of which TVNorge’s (TVNorway) appears overly dramatic, as it on Monday announced the shut down of its news, sports and weather forecast department, effective by the end of this year. The channel’s local programming for [...]]]>

Amid what up until recently was considered a newsprint crisis, commercial TV stations in Norway take drastic budget measures, of which TVNorge’s (TVNorway) appears overly dramatic, as it on Monday announced the shut down of its news, sports and weather forecast department, effective by the end of this year. The channel’s local programming for the Oslo area, OsloTV, is affected, too, taking effect on 19 June this year.

The decision won’t affect the number two commercial channel’s presenters, but third party provider Mastiff, in charge of content and production, took quite a blow. Moreover, the country’s leading commercial TV channel, TV 2′s CEO Alf Hildrum announced an NOK 70 million cost reduction today, saying:

“We may paradoxically find ourselves in a position where the [state-owned] Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation remains the sole TV news provider, ” which may very well be the case, if TV 2 bails out of the news market, too, as Norwegian TV news today consists of just TV 2 and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, NRK.

Although Norwegian finances, in comparison, have been fairly unaffected by the global downturn, we’ve already seen massive lay-offs in the newspaper business, including two newspapers going out of business altogether, which, I’m afraid, is far from the end of it.

Being a freelance journalist myself, I’m seriously considering an imminent career move – as far away from journalism as I can possibly get, unless you have an offer that I simply cannot refuse, to paraphrase a certain Don. I’m certainly open for suggestions, for which purpose I’ll even provide a contact form:

In conclusion, and as a greeting to worried colleagues:

Dear friends, run for your lives. It’s every man for himself!

In all honesty, if the NYT struggles, who are we to think we’ll not?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKpQTLvmU_Y

Photo: TV Norge news, sports and weather presenters (photo from TVNorge).

Amazon’s Kindle DX launch stirred enthused response in the media business the other day, which shouldn’t come as a surprise really, seeing how the old media for the time being seem to be on a desperate search for ways out of the current downturn.

The Kindle DX, Amazon’s generation [...]]]>

Amazon’s Kindle DX launch stirred enthused response in the media business the other day, which shouldn’t come as a surprise really, seeing how the old media for the time being seem to be on a desperate search for ways out of the current downturn.

The Kindle DX, Amazon’s generation 2 ebook board, with a larger screen, specially designed for newspapers, is by many expected to be the salvation for a newspaper business in utter distress. The very idea is, of course, brilliant. Save the forests and reduce costs! But is it a viable business model?

First of all, the Kindle is sold in the U.S. only, mainly, I expect, because it connects to the Internet via Amazon’s own Whispernet, through Sprint’s 3G network. No wi-fi connection, what are they thinking? There are, however, ways around that obstacle, I’ve been told. More important, I think, is the Kindle’s – or rather the distributed newspapers’ – lack of links, interactivity and multimedia.

The news consumers’ flee from newsprint to news on the net isn’t related to the medium (i.e. the paper/the platform) per se: If links, leaving instant comments, sound and living images were an option on newsprint, chances are we’d stick with the good old rags. Unfortunately it’s not. Or rather… Who knows? The electronics industry have been fooling around with bendable, unbreakable electronic displays for over a decade now (I seem to remember Philips experimenting with it, sometime back in the 20th century, too). Maybe it’s time we could expect an outcome?

Back to the Kindle DX: Let’s take a closer look at how it works, shall we (text continues underneath video clip)?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIjFb8TfQag

The New York Times have been at the forefront for several years, in terms of finding new methods for traditional newsprint distribution. Several years ago I tried out the NYT Reader, in beta at the time, presenting the newspaper on-screen, pretty much in exactly the same fashion as a traditional newsprint paper – on the computer, but I soon tired of it.

This time around they attack the need to boost circulation with a different platform. According to a press release issued by Amazon last Wednesday, The New York Times Company and Washington Post Company are launching pilots with Kindle DX this summer. The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and The Washington Post will offer the Kindle DX at a reduced price to readers who live in areas where home-delivery is not available and who sign up for a long-term subscription to the Kindle edition of the newspapers, which ties in nicely with the media executives’ expectations. Clearly, the intention is to maintain – or increase, even – “traditional” circulation and subscription figures. The medium, the newspaper, that is, remains the same. The new thing about it is the distribution channel, as it were. Furthermore, according to the press release:

The New York Times headquarters. Photographer: Haxorjoe/Wikipedia

“At The New York Times Company we are always seeking new ways for our millions of readers to have full and continuing access to our high-quality news and information,” said Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., chairman, The New York Times Company and publisher, The New York Times.

“The wireless delivery and new value-added features of the Kindle DX will provide our large, loyal audience, no matter where they live, with an exciting new way to interact with The New York Times and The Boston Globe. Additionally, by offering a subscription through the Kindle DX to readers who live outside of our delivery areas, we will extend our reach to our loyal readers who will be able to more readily enjoy their favourite newspapers. Meanwhile, we are continuing to work with Amazon to make The New York Times and The Boston Globe experiences on Kindle better than ever.”

Old copies of The Times with supplements (Wikimedia Commons)

You really can’t blame them for trying, but, as indicated above, I really wouldn’t hold my breath. For one, the revenues are dramatically reduced by the mere fact that Amazon charges 70 percent of the subscription income. Secondly, the reason we all fled the print editions is the Internet’s ability to offer additional functionality, which isn’t featured in the Kindle version.

I could go on, of course. Suffice it to say the technology obviously remains at its earliest stages. With Amazon offering U.S. newspapers only, I’d guess that the market has its limits. Why don’t they open up a bit? This really could be Amazon’s equivalent to Apple’s global iPhone success!

But there are alternatives. Take the Plastic Logic Reader, for instance, sporting a full range of business document formats, such as Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint, and Adobe PDFs, as well as newspapers, periodicals and books. Plus (BIG plus!), it has wi-fi connectivity (text continues underneath picture)!

ePaper from Plastic Logic (photo from Plastic Logic).

Let’s have a closer look at that one, too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaQHDxOxVhs

In all honesty, I think it’s time the media execs leave the old print editions behind, regardless the distribution channels or platforms. Modern day man wants the Internet interaction. The platform itself isn’t so bad, though. I’d love reading news on a Kindle or a Plastic Logic reader, but with Internet functionality, if you please.

If I’d like to have one? Of course, but gadgets – any kind of gadget – are a little out of reach if you’re a freelance journalist these days – as an interesting reflection of the overall and very tangible news business crisis.

See also:

• Switched On: Big Kindle on Campus – Engadget
• How Big Can The Kindle Get? – TechCrunch
• Hands-on: Amazon Kindle DX – TechCrunch

Late edit (Tuesday 12 May 2009): Norwegian daily Dagbladet’s tech writer Jan Omdal seems to share my Kindle scepticism in today’s article (in Norwegian, obviously): Ville du betalt for å lese papiravis på denne? Link later changed to this: Ville du betalt for å lese papiravis på denne? (Loosely translated: Would you pay to read print editions on this?)

Top photo: Amazon’s Kindle DX.

About a week after New Year’s Eve, amid Israeli warfare in Gaza, I wrote a post on Palestinian blogger Sameh Akram Habeeb, whose life was in immediate peril as he remained at home to report on the Israeli advances.

Needless to say, we were all severely shocked by the [...]]]>

About a week after New Year’s Eve, amid Israeli warfare in Gaza, I wrote a post on Palestinian blogger Sameh Akram Habeeb, whose life was in immediate peril as he remained at home to report on the Israeli advances.

Palestinian blogger Sameh Akram Habeeb (photo from Gaza today)

Needless to say, we were all severely shocked by the atrocities the Palestinians were forced to endure, even though most fled their homes to take shelter. Unlike Sameh Akram Habeeb, who provided us with the latest developments – a true and passionate journalist at heart.

Good news

I must admit that I’d almost forgot all about him, until two of my overseas readers, Tom Charles and Dana, reminded me of my blog post the other day, that is, bringing happy tidings of Mr. Habeeb’s whereabouts and further endeavours:

Tom Charles:

Sameh is alive and well and spoke at the UK House of Commons, see his blog http://www.gazatoday.blogspot.com

Dana:

[…] Thank God- Sameh is alive, launched The Palestinian Telegraph and is out doing what he does best, advocating for the Palestinian people who have NO voice. He is a brave man.

Peace, Dana

The Palestinian Telegraph, huh? I wouldn’t be a journalist if that didn’t spark my curiosity, so I set out to find out more about it. Turned out its name is The Palestine Telegraph, embellished with the pay off “We change our world”, an advanced blog cum online newspaper, with an impressive level of reporting, considering the (fairly recent – and humble) starting point (post continued after screendump).

Screendump from The Palestine Telegraph, Monday 27 April 2009.

Truth be told, I’m left in awe, overwhelmed with an intense desire to congratulate Sameh Akram Habeeb, whose life and whereabouts were most uncertain, only a couple of months ago.

International acknowledgement

Not only that: During its short life, The Palestine Telegraph has been source to international news, cited by renowned news outlets, such as BBC News, to mention but one.

Undoubtedly, the world needs an independent source from within the Gaza strip and the Palestinian territories on the whole, which makes The Palestine Telegraph’s entrance on the news scene all the more welcome. And to think it’s all done with a humble piece of blog software (WordPress, by the looks of it, but I wouldn’t bet) – while yesterday’s press crumbles all around. I have to say they’ve succeeded far better than we ever did with Nordic iNorden, though, even if the latter has been severely abated over the last months, both in form and content (then again, who would want to read about Scandinavian affairs?).

Please give your support to these good people, by spreading the link, blogging about them – or even by contributing to “The Pal Telegraph” yourself. Visit The Palestine Telegraph today.

From today’s reading:

• Hamas-Faith talks resumed
• Top Hamas leader reelected
• Non Violence in Palestine: Timing and Intentions
• Israeli soldiers storm a wedding, abduct groom
• Swine flu in Israel

There’s even a story on Norwegian lawyers setting out to accuse Israeli leaders of war crimes, which of course holds particular interest to Norwegians, such as I. As for Norwegian-Israeli relations in an overall perspective, please read Norway: Maybe a little too pro Israel?

Top photo: Screendump from “Gaza Today” from Palestinian blogger Sameh Akram Habeeb (23).

Only weeks ago we saw proof that the onset of the long-awaited newsprint death already may signify a new era’s dawn, as the U.S. Colorado online only InDenver.com rose — or is about to rise — from the ashes of

Only weeks ago we saw proof that the onset of the long-awaited newsprint death already may signify a new era’s dawn, as the U.S. Colorado online only InDenver.com rose — or is about to rise — from the ashes of The Rocky Mountain News. Examples are abundant, and seen even in the farthest corners of the world, such as here in Norway, where we’ve seen the first newspapers tumble already, alongside crumbling media corporations.

In a global perspective we even see “the Gray lady” — The New York Times — struggle to stay afloat. For a while it looked as if the NYT could avoid keeling over, after a substantial fund supply, which, obviously, didn’t last very long:

On February 19, 2009, The NYT Co. suspended its common share dividends (both classes of stock) completely, having already cut it by 74% to 6 cents per share in November, 2008.^[41] It was the first elimination of the dividend in four decades as a publicly traded company, and saved an additional $34 million per year.^[42] The NYT Co. laid off 100 employees on March 26, 2009 and cut salaries for the rest of 2009 by 5%.^[43]

— Wikipedia

The New York Times headquarters. Photographer: Haxorjoe/Wikipedia

As an example of later developments. I strongly suggest reading the entire Wikipedia chapter for a detailed explanation of the situation’s gravity. News has it that the NYT indeed is facing bankruptcy, once more, but is not alone.

Pay per view?

However, dwelling on the terrible state of newsprint is hardly very constructive. It’s time to look ahead, which, by the way, the patrons of the press try to do as we speak. One of the avenues explored by press executives around the world these days, is charging online readers money for news, by way of subscriptions or micropayments – a model tried out by several online dailies already, but hardly a viable one, unlike cable TV. There’s bound to be free alternatives, hijacking readers by the numbers.

All the same, we know that advertising alone is highly insufficient as a means to support large newsrooms. As demonstrated during the ongoing recession, advertisers back off when times are tough. Then again; are large newsrooms a prerequisite for good journalism? Not necessarily so.

As for micropayment, there may just be a compromise, as Steve Outing points out in this Editor & Publisher article:

[...] To start with, publishers have to get over the idea that they are going to get paid directly by the user. For the vast majority of a news publisher’s content, there can be no barriers before an article asking the user if he wants to pay a penny or a nickel, or buy a $2 monthly subscription, to read on.

The user must be given the option of whether to pay for a Web site’s content (by financially supporting the site), or read it for free. I’m betting this one will be a tough pill to swallow for many industry executives with traditional media mindsets, but it’s critical because it fits the culture, indeed the nature, of the Internet. Traditional micropayment schemes for online news content — “pay up or go elsewhere” — fight it, and thus are doomed to fail, in my view.

He may just have a point, but online news providers need to take a number of other factors into consideration, too.

Citizen versus old school journalism

We’ve seen several more or less successful alternatives popping up since the turn of the millennium. Quite a few of them based on user participation. And then there’s the bloggers, among whom quite a few advocate the press establishment’s demise, reckoning themselves the champions of future journalism.

I wonder.

Norwegian Moss Dagblad and Halden Dagblad, two A-pressen dailies put out of circulation a week ago.

But blogs and citizen journalism websites cannot be dismissed as a passing thing. We’d be ill advised to make that mistake. Is citizen journalism versus old school journalism the only vantage point? How about a citizen journalism and old school journalism symbiosis? It doesn’t necessarily have to mean full inclusion, but we’ve seen traditional online media thriving once allowing reprocitory trackbacks, as seen in services such as Twingly and Sphere. Both services that I personaly use (or abuse?) extensively.

Added value

Of course I ping these services in order to attract readers. You might even call it parasitism, but online newspapers who allow it actually offer added value to their readers, in terms of alternative angles, views and additional facts, even. Ignore this marvelous Internet trait, and you’re doomed as a publisher. Consider the very nature of the Internet: links and hypertext allowing users to navigate an ocean of facts. Restricting your users or readers to your own publication’s universe, is the safest way to ensure your users’ inevitable fatigue, prompting them to move on — to an open-ended alternative. In opening up, the newspapers make way for a vast network of blogs and other sites linking back, generating invaluable traffic only massive and all too costly advertising campaigns could otherwise produce.

Many online newspapers fail to see – or acknowledge – this potential:

Some commercial websites object to other sites making deep links into their content either because it bypasses advertising on their main pages, passes off their content as that of the linker or, like The Wall Street Journal, they charge users for permanently-valid links. Sometimes, deep linking has led to legal action such as in the 1997 case of Ticketmaster versus Microsoft, where Microsoft deep-linked to Ticketmaster’s site from its Sidewalk service. This case was settled when Microsoft and Ticketmaster arranged a licensing agreement. Ticketmaster later filed a similar case against Tickets.com, and the judge in this case ruled that such linking was legal as long as it was clear to whom the linked pages belonged .^[2] The court also concluded that URL’s themselves were not copyrightable, writing: “A URL is simply an address, open to the public, like the street address of a building, which, if known, can enable the user to reach the building. There is nothing sufficiently original to make the URL a copyrightable item, especially the way it is used. There appear to be no cases holding the URLs to be subject to copyright. On principle, they should not be.”

— Wikipedia

This kind of attitudes have lead Danish online journalists to introduce the Link manifesto:

First law: We link to the sources for the data we use in our journalistic products. If we have read, seen or heard important new information on an external site – for instance about companies, people or surveys – we will link to it.

Second law: We link directly and precisely to the information we use from external sites. In this way we provide proper service to our readers rather than just linking to the front page of the external site.

Third law: We are precise in our information about where a link leads to; about who has produced the information we link to and when. The readers should know where it takes them when they follow a link.

Fourth law: We recognise that an article consisting of precise links to information that represents different angles on an issue is a journalistic product.

Fifth law: We are open to inbound links to our own news sites because we want to be an integrated part of the web’s ecosystem

Sixth law: We aspire to making it easier to link directly to our articles.

— Via Kristine Lowe

Bearing these six laws in mind, you’ve come a long way in facilitating increased traffic, which, after all, is the chief factor, in the eyes of the advertisers on whom the newspapers so depend — and wish to attract.

The Internet enthusiasts’ MSM dislike

Most bloggers or journalists moving in blogging circles are familiar with the widespread near-hatred towards the mainstream media harboured by some of the most avid netizens, among whom some even have proclaimed Twitter the MSM’s successor – at least as provider of breaking news. Granted printnews was replaced as conveyor of breaking news many decades ago — by radio and TV. Which is not to say that printed news have been made obsolete altogether.

And surely, we’ve seen several incidents over the past few months, where Twitter has proven itself an excellent channel for distributing on-site reports, but expecting it to replace traditional news channels, may be just a little optimistic. As a collaborative tool, on the other hand, Twitter has potential, if not always. I asked my followers, among whom we find several media professionals, a very simple question, resulting in this (in reversed order):

1. 
   JarlePetterson is writing piece on newsprintocide and viable biz models for future web presence. Suggestions, relevant links much appreciated. #journalism 07 Apr 2009 from web
2. 
   JarlePetterson thought he’d use this as proof of Twitter’s unsurpassed strengths, but realises they may be overrated: http://tinyurl.com/djsovm #journalism 07 Apr 2009 from web

— this quote was brought to you by quoteurl

(Awkward silence)

Then again, even the Internet enthusiasts’ creed; information wants to be free, has its limitations, at least when business models are tossed into the equation. Had the question been a different one, the outcome may have been equally different. This particular attempt at demonstrating Twitter’s many useful purposes, however, failed. Lesson learned: If you ask people for business models, there’s always a chance they may have one.

Great expectations

Bloggers’ and citizen journalists’ anticipated dominion in the wake of newsprintocide, as I’ve decided to dub it, for want of better words, isn’t very likely to be seen, though – unless the mainstream media display an unbelievable level of misconduct in managing their future online presence. There are numerous reasons for this, among which we find these:

• The majority of private blogs are maintained for social purposes
• News readers — any kind of readers — expect a certain level of literacy in the material, which may be hard to come by in the blogosphere (alas, this increasingly also holds true among presumably educated journalists)
• There are limits to our craving for opinions — news reports require a journalistic methodology and format, with which bloggers in general are all too unfamiliar

Needless to say, the list could go on, but the facts remain: Professional journalists know journalism, while bloggers know what ever their professional trade may be. Luckily, though, we find unique voices among people of all trades, but it hardly suffices as a replacement for the mainstream media.

Basing future media on enthusiastic amateurs, would imply the acceptance of a significant drop in journalistic quality, even if it includes an intimacy and immediacy lacking in the mainstream media. Are the gung-ho Internet enthusiasts prepared to make do with technology for technology’s sake?

I’m afraid so.

But the newspapers would do well to embed the social media and their users, as external as well as internal partners, both out of respect to traffic generation and user-adapted content.

At any rate, newsprint is definitely in for a rocky ride this year — and for years to come, if, by then, it still exists. The online dailies, on the other hand, face a golden opportunity.

Please don’t waste it on old-school thinking.

On that note I think I’ll leave the stage to Jeff Jarvis:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjUeJH4mdF4

Tonight the London Frontline club debates press standards, self-regulation and public trust, asking: Is the press accountable enough?

The debate is chaired by Chaired by Steve Hewlett (The Guardian), with

22 February saw the first major American newspaper’s demise, as the Colorado daily Rocky Mountain News published its last edition, on print as well as on line. In many ways as could be expected, as we’ve been waiting for newspapers to go belly up for some time now – on [...]]]>

22 February saw the first major American newspaper’s demise, as the Colorado daily Rocky Mountain News published its last edition, on print as well as on line. In many ways as could be expected, as we’ve been waiting for newspapers to go belly up for some time now – on a global basis. But the Rocky’s editorial staff didn’t give up. For some time now, they’ve continued to publish local news in I Want My Rocky, a blog not much unlike this, in terms of technology and design.

It soon became clear, however, that further developments were afoot. In a press conference yesterday, the Rocky successor, The InDenverTimes.com was announced, an online only newspaper, to be published some time later this spring. Here are a few video clips, issued on the happy occasion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToTtCFYlFbE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctUw4tIwQH4

For Rocky readers preferring paper, on the other hand, this marks the end:

The Rocky Mountain News's final edition on 22 February 2009.

On the very same day we learn that The Seattle Post-Intelligencer decides to halt its printed edition, going online only. Today’s printed edition is its last.

This may be idle speculation, but it should come as no surprise that, before long, most news will have to be read online, at least in the industrialised world, where Internet penetration has reached a level rendering printed news obsolete.

Some of us have seen this coming for quite some time, even though we do not applaud it, unlike some journalists and techies, who, enthused by the technology’s possibilities, have advocated the media parenticide now taking place. As for me, I see no reason to rejoice in numerous colleagues being laid off. The Seattle P-I reorganisation says it all:

About 20 news gatherers and Web producers will stay on with seattlepi.com, plus another 20 newly hired advertising sales staff. The publisher will stick around through the transition period, but does not expect to be part of the ongoing online operation.

— The Seattle P-I

Up until today, the editorial staff alone counted 165 members.

I fear that we’ll see a lot more of this in times to come, perhaps even sooner than expected. But I must say that I find the tech-enthused journalists’ cheers a little out of place. Seems like we’re celebrating matter’s victory over mind. Certainly, technology involves mind, too, but a different mindset, if you know what I mean.

And of course, the Internet offers a wide variety of possibilities unavailable to the printed newspaper, such as instant reader contributions, comments, polls, quizzes and multimedia, as so lavishly demonstrated in this post. Even so, printed news offers a different reading experience. After all, there’s a reason why some prefer the book over the filmed version.

But, unlike some, I fail to see the upside to colleagues losing their livelihood by the numbers. In fact, as a freelance journalist, I’ve already started to feel the consequences of the ongoing recession. In the wake of advertisers’ reluctance to pay on time, my fees have been delayed considerably, and the number of assignments have dropped below an acceptable level (or perhaps you thought I just preferred blogging over writing for money).

We all notice the down-turn, one way or the other, but happily taking leave of printed news… Really, I don’t know about that.

This may sound a little strange, coming from someone who gave up printed newspapers a long time ago. In other words, I concur with those advocating news on the net. I just don’t see why print necessarily has to be the enemy.

There are ways to combine the two. We just need to find the right formula.