Journalism isn't dying, but some news outlets are finding it difficult to stay in business. The way we get our news is undoubtedly changing. Fewer and fewer people are reading physical newspapers, and more and more people are getting their news online. So while journalism itself will be here forever, news outlets might not.
So how do we stop news outlets from disappearing forever? That's one of the question this class hopes to answer. One of our homework assignments was to come up with 10 original ways to save them (yes, it's as hard as it sounds. Here are my thoughts:
1) Every news outlets should establish paywalls on their websites
Just to review, a paywall is a feature news outlets use that force readers to subscribe to their paper before they can read their online content. The Boston Globe uses this, and The New York Times activates its paywall after a certain amount of article views a month. If people really cared about their news, they would pay to read it online.
2) Better interaction with readers
Many journalists use Twitter and Facebook to interact with their readers, but maybe we should go beyond that. When readers comment on articles we should respond to their comments. We should ask readers what THEY want to read. I'm not saying newspapers should transform to their needs, but it wouldn't hurt to ask. What about user submitted photos, articles, and opinion pieces? I think the more interaction, the better.
3) Print, TV, and radio news outlets should work together
News outlets are separated; you never see, for example, NHPR and The Boston Globe collaborate on projects together. It might not necessarily bring in more money, but it would attract a lot of attention. And who knows, maybe it could pave the path for future business ventures.
4) Print, TV, and radio news outlets should merge
What would happen if news outlets like The New York Times and WMUR pooled their resources and worked under the same company? So many news outlets spend money to survive against competition; let's just combine various print, TV, and radio news outlets that focus on different forms of media. The new company could dominate the many different methods of reporting.
5) Offer different subscription packages
Some people enjoy reading the news, but not enough to pay for the whole yearly package. What if they only like the arts section of the newspaper, but they don't want to subscribe to the whole thing? That newspaper could be losing customers just because they don't offer specific packages.
6) Focus on getting it right, not first
Let's look at stories like the Connecticut shootings and the Boston Marathon bombings. The number of false reports is staggering. I actually stopped paying attention for a day or two so some of the false news could correct itself. I think this all boils down to news outlets focusing on reporting first and not correctly. People lose faith when there are false reports. If journalists built their career around this standard, maybe people would have more courage to pay for news.
7) An easier way for readers to become involved with their news outlets
Readers have been able to comment on articles, share articles, and write letters to the editors for a long time now. We should let our readers become even more involved. Maybe let worthy contributors or bloggers sit in on editing meetings? The more readers can interact with their favorite news outlets, the better.
8) Hire more contributors
I sometimes think news outlets are too proud. Many don't allow contributors to submit their work...why? This is free content. As long as the work is well done, I don't see anything wrong with it.
9) Prove to the public that journalists can be trusted
This will be tough, but not impossible. When I was a senior in high school, there were a series of tragic deaths that plagued my home town. A lot of journalists were in our town during that time, and most of them did not respect the publics wishes. I heard so many stories of reporters disrespecting my classmates and taking photos without asking them. I'm not saying every journalist does this, but a lot do. We need to prove to the public that we have respect and integrity. If we can accomplish this, then maybe more people will pay for their news.
10) Save colored images for the Internet
Some facts: colored ink costs more than black ink, and more people get their news online than in print. By putting two and two together, it makes sense to only use black ink for print newspapers.
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