Toellner Tells it

The beginning of online-only "newspapers"

I've written here several times about the decline of local media coverage.  As the costs of delivering the news have increased (including the building of hugely expensive printing facilities), newspapers in particular, and even TV news (and the basic non-existance of radio news), have cut costs by cutting staff and reporting.  It's happened all over the country. It's led to less reporting, and more focus on press releases.  And when they do report, there are usually fewer sources called.

Not long ago the KC Star was one of the better local newspapers in the country.  But corporate buyouts, cutting of staff, and increased focus on the bottom line, etc have caused it to be a shell of its former self. With a few exceptions, most of the reporting is suspect at best.  I've joked for a while, that if I've ever been involved in an event in this city, and seen the news coverage of it, I've pretty much always wondered if the reporter and I were at the same event.

Thus the rise in online "newspapers".  In many communities, real, serious journalists are starting "newspapers" online that are focused on investigative reporting, and really relaying local news.  By distributing online, they're able to spend only a small amount of their financial resources on distribution, and focus most of their resources on reporting.  A novel concept.  There is an interesting interview with the founder of one of these newspapers voiceofsandiego.org that can be read here.  The founder of the website mentions other startup ventures similar to it that are popping up in places like Minneapolis and St. Louis.

It's a great concept....and one that I would love to see started in Kansas City.  Already I get so much of my local news and information from reading bloggers who actually research their information.  Sites like the Kansas City Post, Gone Mild, Blog KC, KC Light Rail, and hell, even Tony's Kansas City when he is having a good day have provided me much more information about certain areas of interest in Kansas City than I've ever gotten from any of the local "news" sources.

In the end, we'll all benefit with the competition of news sources...because we'll have differing opinions, be free of just reading city hall press releases, and getting information beyond just the agenda often set forth by the Star.  Everyone will be a winner except for the traditional news sources that fail to adapt and change.

I can't wait.

You know the blogosphere is real when...

There was a great piece this morning on the Freakonomics blog by author Stephen Dunbar about the power of blogs. His final quote is this: "The biggest takeaway for me was this: the blogosphere is real in a way that none of us, journalists or economists or parents or cops, could have imagined a few years ago."

The power of the blogosphere became very evident for me last week.  It didn't take long for a little opinion piece about destroying a retail block of Troost to build an electrical substation before there were a lot of folks from KCP&L paying attention.  I know Mark Forsythe has been contacted many times on topics that he's discussed over at his blog...and Mark and I even jokingly had an "off the record" conversation just yesterday.  And I know my traffic pales in comparison to Dunbar's (after all, I haven't written a fabulous book).

As newspapers continue to cut staffing, and work harder at rushing to print press releases faster than the bloggers vs actually researching and reporting on subjects, will further enhance blogs as an important way that people get information...and in some cases, the only way people can find out about certain subject.

I discussed this some last month, but am further and further amazed by the difference some well-educated and written people can have -- and that power is likely to become greater in influencing political and public opinion.

Blogging vs. Journalism

There's a good story in the Star today about the blurring of the lines between Journalism and Blogging.  The article is centered around sports journalism/blogging, but it's pretty easy to take the leap between sports (which tends to be the leader in many social issues including racial barriers and medical care).  Blogging has become major source of information for a lot of people -- as newspapers/tv stations have continued to cut back in reporting staff (and also supplying slanted points of view), bloggers have come on the scene to provide additional insights/points of view on the news of the day. The New York Islanders have even opened up one press box for bloggers who will be credentialed to cover games.

Even here in KC politics, the TIF Commission Report wasn't released until the local bloggers requested its release.

The media world is changing.  Media outlets will struggle with it. Local politicians will struggle with it.  And there is a certain amount of "power" that will come from being a political blogger.  It's our responsibility to use this power wisely...and to help do what the traditional media has long sense forgotten its purpose was under the first amendment of the Constitution...to be a watchdog of the government.

Why Newspapers Are in Trouble

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003086961

Great article on why newspapers have to win online in order to succeed.  I don't think anyone would disagree with the article.  But let's just say, I'm skeptical that it can be done.

Newspapers have a lot of overhead costs. It costs a LOT of money to hire reporters, write the paper, typeset the paper, print it and distribute it.  Most newspapers have a lot of office space and are paying off VERY expensive new printing presses that were purchased when most newspapers have gone to the smaller newspaper format in the past 8 years.  Additionally, nearly all major newspapers in the country are owned by major media conglomerates (think Gannett, McClatchy or Tribune Co). In order to keep profit margins up (to appease investors), newspapers have significantly cut staff.  Over time, this has led to overworked reporters.  Overworked reporters will, overtime, tend to cut corners on doing news stories.  They won't get the 3rd, 4th and 5th sources that really add depth to the stories...and often can't afford the time it takes to get a 2nd source to confirm a story.  Reporting has become sloppy (to put it lightly).   Because of the demand for profitablitily, and the huge costs that come with pringing the physical newspaper, there is really no way to reverse the trend.

Meanwhile, let's assume 4 or 5 reporters get together and decide to start an online newspaper. They're starting with virtually no overhead -- no expensive printing presses, minimal office space needed, and no distribution costs.  All of the online newspaper's resources will go into server space and good reporting.  There are no deadlines -- when a story is done, it's posted.  Need an extra hour to get the extra source?  No problem.  We'll post it at 2:00 instead of 1:00.  These online resources can provide great information, and charge a minimum amount online ($5 a month maybe?) for people to access this content.

Given this scenerio, a traditional newspaper has no chance of competing head-to-head - -because, for as long as they have a printed version of the paper, they will always have a larger portion of their resources going into printing and distribution than the reporting.  People are beginning to demand better reporting.  It's my opinion that it will be impossible for traditional newspapers to compete in the online world.

Eventually, this could be very good for consumers.  Years ago, most major cities had competing daily newspapers that provided different perspectives and views on the world's events. But over time, newspapers folded or merged, leaving most markets with only one daily newspaper source and no alternative views.  With the vast majority of radio stations going to national music formats (and most TV news just being junk at this point), the one traditional newspaper has been the lone voice for local news issues.  The emergence of true online journalism will allow for more players to be involved, including decenting opinions.  It will be good for the further education of the public on local issues.  And in the end people will become smarter, and likely, there will be more demand for good journalists.

But it won't be traditional newspapers that start the trend, it will be a small group of entrepreneurs that will begin the trend.