{"id":181,"date":"2019-10-17T22:34:29","date_gmt":"2019-10-17T22:34:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/?page_id=181"},"modified":"2019-10-17T22:34:30","modified_gmt":"2019-10-17T22:34:30","slug":"new-forms-of-ownership","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/new-forms-of-ownership\/","title":{"rendered":"New-forms-of-ownership"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">New forms of ownership &amp; How to support owners that seek to establish local journalism as a civic resource<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Geneva Overholser &amp; Jim Shaffer notes<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>At the session: Shaffer and Overholser convening, Peck, Clement, Folpe, Caputo, Hosein, Johnson (of KY), Messerschmidt, Lawson (first part of session), Holman (last part of session)&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.mediagiraffe.org\/wiki\/index.php\/Memphis-roster\">(BIOS PAGE)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>Comment before the session by Chris Peck about the current economic model, which is \u201cstrangling the media. We\u2019re organizing all the resources to fight that battle, and we don\u2019t have the resources to engage new media, build your community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A. First topic (and related): Investors\u2019 objectives. Opening question by Shaffer: Do we need a conversation about why we need a new breed of owners whose objectives do not include a competitive return on capital?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: So is this about reforming existing owners, or finding a \u201cnew breed?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: The \u201cnew breed\u201d couldn\u2019t just be corporate owners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: Agree. Because corporate owners, by definition, would have to be responsible to shareholders. Need a breed responsible to civic interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Folpe: What about Socially Responsible Investing?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: Even \u201csocially responsible investors\u201d still require at least some financial return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Two thoughts: How to bring social-investor money to news gathering<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Discussion broke out two different concepts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Local philanthropists willing to buy media and run them in the public interest, perhaps with no expectation of a financial return.<\/li><li>The media equivalent of environmental SRI, encouraging shareholders to invest in responsible companies. (Trillium now working on this.)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: SRI can mean two things: 1. Do no harm, or 2. Seek to make a specific positive change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Current crop of investors still return-driven<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck, quoting John Soloski\u2019s thinking: Now that papers are commanding much lower prices (see Minneapolis Star Tribune) there is a potential upside in that investors could buy, have a much lower acceptable rate of return, produce a steady stable income, and still operate in the public interest. 12-15% would be OK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Qs about that: Would Wall St. accept that (assuming the company is public or paced by the public capital markets), and will the current economic model reliably continue to produce even that low-but-stable rate?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: \u201cEven private capital management firms like Avista (Minneapolis S-T) still have to be economically responsible. Based on statements by Chris Harte of Avista, Avista thinks they are buying \u201cout of favor\u201d equities, almost like a value stock, \u201cbuy low, sell high.\u201d They don\u2019t get that the economics of traditional newspapering are completely collapsing.\u201d They are bound to be disappointed, leading to more changes of ownership, until the new owners understand the new economic realities\u2026 We need a completely new motivation by owners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck, quoting Christianson: Talk of disruptive technology, inability of traditional institutions to respond, something bound to grow up under newspapers and replace them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: Perhaps an example would be Philadelphia, where they started with lofty statements, but the bottom fell out so fast \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: That they just laid off 75 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Pam McAllister Johnson: But small newspapers, especially weeklies, are thriving. They\u2019re buying presses, have good profit streams. Q\u2014are they simply lagging behind the currently more trouble metro dailies?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Clement: On Long Island, even the small ones are dying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: The small ones will probably be the last to go, but they will also be affected by the decline of classified (1:1 contact), and display 1:many), which has paid for journalism at newspapers. TV is affected only by the decline in the 1:many, which is also declining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Johnson: Her experience is that the journalists that first embrace the on-line media are the photographers, since they can\u2019t get their work onto paper, but can supplement paper with on-line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Thinking of live without printing &#8212; outsourcing<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>B. Moving along, Chris Peck speaks of print itself as an economic millstone. We eventually need to get away from print and its expense. Centralized copy desks. Potential to outsource circulation, printing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With Web producing typically only 5 to 6 percent of metro dailies\u2019 revenues, the good news is that (nonetheless) many Web operations now are approaching generating enough revenues to cover editorial costs. (For example, Web producing cash flow of about $8 million could handle many metro newsrooms)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Discussion: Potential to buy newspapers and do away with printing presses, distribution costs. A foundation could make this happen, or local monied interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[Another model \u2013 Consumers Union. 2 million paid members on their Website. Everybody pays a fee. Do this in communities, with citizens paying?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Q \u2013 The elitism of this model, excluding those who can\u2019t\/don\u2019t pay to join.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Upside is the community owns it. They think having journalists is valuable, and they\u2019re willing to pay for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: The change could come either through takeover of existing newspapers or through building new Web news \u201cpapers\u201d\/services. Go to foundations, other do-gooders, and start news organizations in the public interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The choice: Re-engineer or start from scratch<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: What\u2019s the point of buying the ruined hulk of a failing newspaper? Why not start from scratch?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Several: Audience, brand recognition, credibility<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Caputo: Yes, there are two models:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Start from scratch, or<\/li><li>Buy existing newsrooms\/papers from chains and families.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Hanson: This discussion is too newspaper-centered. (Agreement.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are talking mostly in any case about Web \u201cpublications,\u201d but publications don\u2019t necessarily imply print.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Caputo: The starting point doesn\u2019t matter. It\u2019s the eventual realization that the end point is a multi-purposed newsroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: So, it\u2019s newsgathering that\u2019s a key element of social capital. (Not news dissemination in any particular form.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jonathan Lawson: Introduces discussion of newspaper as owned by municipality. Comparable to utilities. Municipal broadband. \u201cThis is about communications rights, free speech. We need to have quality journalism.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Q \u2013 how to make it happen nationally, given nature of federal politics. Maybe locally?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: Something you need locally, like the lights and water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lawson: Let everyone lobby for a broadband communications utility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Grants vs. advertising &#8212; it&#8217;s hard either way<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>C. Strength of advertising model. Noting comment from night before that nonprofits are far from a problem-free solution. Noting here, too, that keeping grants going is quite an effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Hosein: You need to change the \u201crules\u201d of journalism, when the support of journalism gets in bed with funders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: So, the \u201cold\u201d journalism was also supported by \u201cfunders,\u201d and acceptable \u201crules\u201d or understandings emerged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>??: Other nations have government support. Problematic here, for various reasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lawson: NPR and PBS are models.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: Offer tax breaks?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: But tax breaks are only useful if there\u2019s a profit, generating tax that needs to be sheltered. I wouldn\u2019t count on profit for at least a while, therefore, tax breaks wouldn\u2019t be of value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>??: Some combination of support: benevolent money at startup, some subscription money, some advertising. Maybe profit eventually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Hosein: \u201cJournalism is like Mozart. Mozart always had a patron. The community can be the patron.\u201d As for the difficulties that could be caused by the communities\u2019 demands (who wants nosy journalists poking around?) a firewall would be needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Folpe: We would need to change the concept of government as a patron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Discussion of \u201ccause-related\u201d vs. \u201cimpartial\u201d media. Need for\/ value in both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Messerschmidt: Had a conversation with a Ford Foundation program officer (John Funibiki, no longer at FF), NW Cable News, with Belo \u2026 a new form of media organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: What if we sought support from universities? They have money? (Many: They do??)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: In any case, there\u2019s so much good that comes from community support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Union model \u2013 UAW owned little radio stations. Huge pot of money there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: And Christian radio \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Caputo: But are we deviating from public interests? \u2026 If journalists could cast themselves as educators \u2026 maybe too top down \u2026 Overholser: Yes, probably.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>D. Moving on to broader hopes \u2013 educating the public about value of journalism as well as producing news in the public interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Taping the &#8220;expression&#8221; of the young-adult network?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: Suppose we operate at the secondary level, creating a network of young people as newsgatherers. Link up with public schools. Join other local organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Hosein: Maybe we call this course or subject \u201cexpression.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: Who is \u201cwe?\u201d Consumers\u2019 Union model?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Caputo: Government seed money?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Several: Subscription, ala public broadcasting?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The idea: Local civic leadership; test communities<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: There\u2019s a model in Portland, ME. The Institute of Civic Leadership. The mission is to build civic capacity. \u201cPerhaps ICL could run this thing as a civic resource.\u201d We need to talk to Ralph Gage in Lawrence KS to learn from his experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Holman: Ralph has been actually conducting classes \u2013 over subscribed &#8211; in how citizens can be journalists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2026 social venture partners<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Caputo: Tough sell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: But so much to be gained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Development of these themes \u2013 angel investors, signing up local citizens. A significant number of local people as shareholders \u201cYou live here, you get a share\u201d You can be a member for free, but if you\u2019d like to pay, do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: How about owning or partnering with coffee shops around the town, to convene people. Build civic capacity. (maybe make money on the beverages). Hook up with schools, media reform organizations \u2026 Obits as a gold mine\u2026 no law that you must contribute in church, but it becomes part of the culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Johnson: Tithe to the civic media?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>E. What to do now? Go out and identify 10 or 12 communities ripe for this. Isolated small towns? Failing newspapers?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Peck: Where would this work best?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Hosein: Kelowna, BC: Terrible (Thompson) paper; terrible TV; 100,000 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overholser: What\u2019s different about this one?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: Civic values? Role of media in education?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Could APME community roundtables help identify such communities?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Develop a business model, find a laboratory, do a media startup. Two or three places?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Could a school of journalism take this model under its wing?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jane Folpe (Columbia) \u2013 ask a biz school to do it. To build a model. Bring together J school, biz school, school of public policy<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shaffer: Medill and Kellogg would be good collaborators, if we could interest them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Messerschmidt: And an institute for public policy\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">NEXT STEP: Create the model of civic-resource journalism<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Next steps: (all) Let\u2019s try to develop a model or template for \u201ccivic resource\u201d journalism and see if we can use this to inspire and stimulate action. We need to develop and publicize this model. Let\u2019s see if we can find and suggest this to test cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>RESOURCE CONTACT:&nbsp;<a href=\"mailto:jshaffer@maine.rr.com\">mailto:jshaffer@maine.rr.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New forms of ownership &amp; How to support owners that seek to establish local journalism as a civic resource Geneva Overholser &amp; Jim Shaffer notes At the session: Shaffer and Overholser convening, Peck, Clement, Folpe, Caputo, Hosein, Johnson (of KY), Messerschmidt, Lawson (first part of session), Holman (last part of session)&nbsp;(BIOS PAGE) Comment before the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-181","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=181"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/181\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":182,"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/181\/revisions\/182"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalismthatmatters.org\/memphis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}