Why Was It Bad For The Chicago Tribune To Find Out What Readers Wanted?

from the i'm-confused dept

There was a recent dustup in Chicago as news came out that the Chicago Tribune had been running reader surveys on certain news stories before they were published. This has upset a bunch of folks at the Tribune who claim that it somehow "breaks the bond between reporters and editors in a fundamental way." The Tribune has apologized and claimed the whole program was a mistake. But, for the life of me, I'm having trouble figuring out what's the problem. Actually finding out what your community wants? Getting feedback? Being more interactive and engaged with the community? Listening to them? Being open and recognizing a story is a living document? These are all things that any newspaper should be doing these days.

Filed Under: chicago tribune, journalism, marketing, surveys
Companies: tribune company

Will Professor Craigslist Please Comment On The Tribune's Decision To Drop Job Ads?

from the contrast dept

We've already seen newspapers blame Craigslist for the various troubles they face (rather than recognizing the problem is their own ability to adjust and adapt). So it will be interesting to see how various journalists react to the news that Craigslist is now endowing a journalism professorship at UC Berkeley with a few million dollars of its ample profits. And, as an interesting contrast to that announcement, Marc Andreessen points us to the news that the Chicago Tribune has decided to give up printing job ads during the week. It's quite likely that Craigslist is doing quite well with job listings in Chicago... and not just on weekends. However, this doesn't mean that Craigslist "killed" the Tribune's job listing section -- but that the Tribune was way too slow in reacting to the changing market. Hopefully, whoever takes on the role of the Craigslist professor will know not to blame sites like Craigslist and Google for newspapers unwillingness to adapt.

Filed Under: chicago tribune, classifieds, journalism professorship, uc berkeley
Companies: craigslist