Some of the conclusions that we came to at our meeting last October:
—Disentangle from Wall Street. The day sof 20-30 percent profit margins (40-50 percent in TV) are over. The Wall Street average is 11 percent. News organizations that provide the best reporting/service to their communities figure between 8 and 15 percent. Why is that important? At 8 percent, there are double the numbrer of reporters, and better community coverage, than at 20 percent.
—Web-centric newsroom; Web first—spin off text, video and audio to several different platforms, including paper, cell phone, PDA, iPod, iPod w/video.
—Publish a print version only three or four days a week, not seven days a week. Content of print drastically different from content on Web.
—Distributed newsroom – many reporters, perhaps editors, will be in the communities in which they do their reporting, in coffee shops, libraries, etc., where accessible and have conversation with members of community. No more sequestered away from the community and access by the community.
—No such thing as only reporter or only photographer – everyone’s a multimedia reporter.
—For most news organizations, local first, state second (cover state issues especially as they relates to local), national as it relates to local, with links to sites with national coverage; international as it relates to local, with links to sites with international coverage.
—Most stories in context – that means stories of the day embedded in “shells” that hold as much related info as possible, such as maps, searchable data, resources, archives, timelines, and a place where members of community can contribute information and stories. The end of been-there-done-that journalism.
—Conversation – the end of one-way, I lecture, you listen, I know more than you do. The community knows more, and their input is institutionalized. Citizen journalists and information from members of the community appear shoulder-to-shoulder with professional journalists.
—Consequences: Role of journalists is changing quickly, and dramatically. Journalists become managers of information, and their organization, the most trusted source of news and information in the community, which means that information provided on news organizations sites is accurate and provides links to useful information so that people in the community can personalize the stories of the day.