News Not All Bad For Newspapers

from the some-good-mixed-in dept

Wed, Oct 4th 2006 10:32pm — Mike Masnick

We've had a bunch of posts lately about some of the problems newspapers have faced in actually embracing the internet. So, it's at least good to hear that traffic to newspaper websites is growing. Unfortunately, the industry needs to be careful not to misinterpret this stat. They may take it to mean that they're doing a good job. However, you need to take into account the fact that it's only natural that more people will start to gravitate to the web-based versions of the newspapers that they read. The real question is whether or not they can keep that traffic, and come up with a business model that offsets the loss in revenue from dwindling paper subscribers -- and, while some have definitely recognized this fact and are taking big steps forward, others are still very complacent.

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team

12 Comments

If you liked this post, you may also be interested in...

Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread

dorpus, 4 Oct 2006 @ 11:53pm

Thugocracy
So should the media follow the example of OhMyNews, which is an openly pro-North-Korean site that gave a donation of $750,000 to the North Korean government at a recent OhMyNews Marathon in Pyongyang? OhMyNews is bankrolled by Masayoshi Son, founder of the Japanese shell company Softbank, a kind of Japanese Enron that duped investors out of billions for a company that produces nothing.

Or should Colombian cocaine warlords fund marijuana advocacy sites in the West? Should Russian and Chinese operatives run "news" sites spewing false information?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
tek'a, 5 Oct 2006 @ 1:11am

re:
dorpus.. do you even read the posts? or simply hammer out the first thing that comes to the wasteland known as your mind.

what does a biased and pro-North Korean news company bankrolled by a japanese swindler have to do with cautious optimism for the Newspaper's place (if not physical format) in modern society?

and on topic.. hopefully good news. the papers need to remember that they can still give us things that cnn or routers cant. local news, information, classifieds, and (just as important) local figures, writers and reporters who also know Us, the paper-buying, lunch-break reading public they serve locally.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Rick, 5 Oct 2006 @ 1:22am

My local newspaper still requires registration - which I gave into eventually.

I still quit going there as they seem to enjoy only having a 24 hour login cookie, which means re-logging in every day. :(

Someday they may 'get it.' Until then, I'm happy with ignoring them and their overpriced print version.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Donald Duck, 5 Oct 2006 @ 1:42am

News papers vs internet
Internet news is RIGHT NOW. Newspapers is when it dries out from the puddle it was thrown in. Or if the pot head paper man would even get in his car tonight to pass them out.

I guess if the news paper people want to increase readers they are going to have to figure out how to update their product. Make reading more interesting. Inventing new story ideas instead of the same old same old.

I mean if you get one in the morning and then get one in the evening you know some thing is going to happen between those two time periods. There could be a billion ideas on how the newspapers of today can still sale papers. Number one is get rid of the liberal wacked out knee cap jobs they do day in and day out on republicans and every thing they are for!

Seems like they always say the economy is horrible and the war is bad. How about economy is booming and the war saved millions of lives. Or maybe ask tough questions on why we need to be taxed so much in this nation? Some times reading headlines and the stories is like watching some liberal talk show on tv. Usually the tv goes off, usually the paper stays in the tv room. I'm online reading the news I WANT TO READ in the SLANT I want to read it in!

Maybe they could have a short verison of their top news in full color mailed in a very thin recyclable plastic, with no news paper odors.

It would be 'neat' easy to 'copy' pic's and the story with the scanner and it can have a link online to each news story so you can forward the story to your co-workers or friends. The plastic could last for 100 plus years but could be biodegradable as well? It probably wouldn't tear as easy and it would be waterproof for some poor homeless dude to snuggle up with when it snows :)~

I"m sure there is companies out there that might have some great ideas on way's to improve readership of the papers. Some newspaper people is going to have to go out on the limb and figure it out because they are getting as old as dirt. Cause I have the net here, lap top, google on my phone every where.

I was asked once a question a while back. "Which device do you think is going to be technically obsolete in ten years"

A lot of people believe it would be the Landline phones
could newspapers be obsolete in ten years?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Donald Duck, 5 Oct 2006 @ 1:56am

Re: North Korea WTF ????
Doofus lower the meds ....I caught my self reading that post again...... Like this is the 10th time and I still can't figure it out.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Mark, 5 Oct 2006 @ 5:05am

OhMyNews?
The same swindler must run OhMyTrance.com as well.

/s
[ link to this | view in thread ]
GSArnold, 5 Oct 2006 @ 6:45am

Re: News papers vs internet
A lot of people believe it would be the Landline phones could newspapers be obsolete in ten years?

Why not? We've already obsoleted journalism. ;)
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Daffy Duck, 5 Oct 2006 @ 6:50am

Re: News papers vs internet
Well talk about a rant! Wow, another gullible one that throws politics, religion, class, etc. at everything. Please don't make it so obvious that you allow the media to form your opinions. Pot head paperman?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
The Man, 5 Oct 2006 @ 8:47am

Not everyone embraces the Internet
Papers do have a problem, but I don't think that it is people running to their computer to read the local news. The TechDirt readers and writers have a tech slant in their view of technology. I view your mindsets the same way that highly political people think. For example, a big time dem has dem freinds and listens to dem things and starts to think that everyone is a dem and their are only a few fringe religous right wakos running around. Their view on life is very slanted in only one direction so much that they can not see the whole picture.

You Techdirt people are the same. Only a small percentage of people want to get all their information from the Internet and think that the Internet is the future of everyting good in the world.

When I think of newspapers, I think of relaxing in a chair and reading with a cup of coffe. Not hunched over a keyboard and screen frantically clicking away. I have used a laptop in bed, couch, table, you name it, and I can think of nothing less comfortable than trying to read articals online.

I would venture to say that TV is much more the reason for the decline of paper. It is easier and mindless to watch the TV news. Also, the content in local papers has not been updated in years. If they work on that and tailor it to the community better, they may see an increase in readers. Just posting to the Internet will not fix that.

The Internet is useful for somethings, but it also kind of sucks.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
WTF Doofus, 5 Oct 2006 @ 9:18am

Re: Thugocracy
What the #$%@* does this have to do with the post? I'm all for respecting opinions and arguing different viewpoints... but WTF!

Newspapers will have to find new ways to retain readers online much like they must currently retain readers through subscriptions. RSS feeds will help; however, it's difficult with the multitude of news sources on the internet.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
dorpus, 5 Oct 2006 @ 11:03am

Re: Re: Thugocracy
My point was that the new media offers no advantages over the old. OhMyNews loudly proclaimed itself a pioneer in the field of "citizen journalism" -- but in the end, it is just a pro-North-Korean propaganda mill funded by the mafia. The new media will create a proliferation of even more biased, partisan viewpoints; it will lead to people just believing what they want to believe, and the loss of common ground that is vital for a democracy to work.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
AMP, 5 Oct 2006 @ 11:51am

Re: Thugocracy
I vote for the second one...Columbain cocaine and marajuana advocacy.

Wait, was this a poll that I was supposed to vote on? Or just a statement? I am confused as the biased, north korean backed media has eroded my ability to think for myself. The marajuana isn't helping anything either.
[ link to this | view in thread ]