Rupert says journalists forsaking their own - Marketing Magazine

There are predictions of rough times ahead for the publishing industry, but it seems Rupert Murdoch believes the profession may still have a bright future, if it can get rid of reporters and editors who have ignored their readers.

“My summary of the way some of the established media has responded to the internet is this: It’s not newspapers that might become obsolete. It’s some of the editors, reporters, and proprietors who are forgetting a newspaper’s most precious asset: the bond with its readers,” says Murdoch, in remarks made as part of a lecture series sponsored by the ABC.

Murdoch, whose company News Corporation owns MySpace and The Wall Street Journal, criticised what he sees as a culture of “complacency and condescension” in newsrooms.

The 77-year-old, recalling a long career in newspapers that began with The Adelaide News in 1952, asserts the profession has failed to creatively respond to changes wrought by technology.

“It used to be that a handful of editors could decide what was news and what was not… today, editors are losing this power. The internet, for example, provides access to thousands of new sources that cover things an editor might ignore. And if you aren’t satisfied with that, you can start up your own blog, and cover and comment on the news yourself.”

These comments from Murdoch come at a time when the media landscape looks increasingly bleak for print-based and online news organizations.

A recent report by US research company, Goldman Sachs, predicts that advertising pressure will continue because of the declines in the auto and financial industries. Online outlets are also feeling the impact.

Despite these potential blemishes, however, Murdoch believes newspapers can still count on circulation gains “if papers provide readers with news they can trust.” He adds that they will also need to embrace technology advances like RSS feeds and targeted e-mails.

“The newspaper, or a very close electronic cousin, will always be around. It may not be thrown on your front doorstep the way it is today. But the thud it makes as it lands will continue to echo around society and the world.”


Greg Tingle

It's great to hear Rupert Murdoch tell it straight. I'm a former journalist, now media analyst, portal developer and gaming entrepreneur. Some of the newsrooms have been complacent. It's no secret that some editors and journalists do have an attitude and ego problem. Just because someone in a newsroom doesn't think your story is news, doesn't make it so. Many newsrooms are under resourced. Let's be real... they often don't have all the resources and all the staff required to cover the news like the good old days, when the journo's hit the street in search of a good story. News stories become recycled and press releases are often not fully checked over for facts. Comment on the news yourself like News Limited has done so well with News.com.au, and sometimes the switched on editors and journalists will follow up on the comments left on the newspaper website, and some of the comments and add ons can then find their way into print.

Remember, print ends up in the bin with the rubbish, and online news lives on. It's called the speed of news, which is about as fast as the speed of sound. Murdoch said, 'Big will not beat small anymore, it will be the fast beating the slow. Gaming and media tycoon, James Packer said, "Internet is like electricity", and Charles Darwin said, "In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed". Can we see a pattern here?

By the way, great to see Marketing Magazine online (and listening to its readership). With Murdoch now running The Wall Street Journal he must be the most connected media man in the world, if he wasn't already, and for his sake, let's hope this journalists have got the financial news right. Speaking of financial news and Murdoch, Scott Pape has a great News Limited blog entitled, The Barefoot Investor, and Pape listens and engages with his readership also. By doing so the media gains more insight into news stories, and as is the case right here, often doesn't have to even pay for more news, in times when everyone is watching the bottom line, and reading the fine print!


Kate

Thanks for the comment Greg! I like a bit of Darwinian theory ;-) Those are some very valid points and I'll be sure to check out the blogs recs. and so forth.

Anyone else have a different take?


Matty

I may be biased but I agree with MediaManOz. While it's finally good to hear someone of major media influence (ie, Mr Murdoch) say what we're all thinking, it'll be up to the next generation of editors, journos, bloggers, social media stars to take it to that next level. Quality or legitimacy doesn't have to suffer (though there are (BANNED WORD FILTERED) bloggers, etc, out there) and we can all embrace where new media takes us.

So let's have it - old-fashioned dedication mixed with modern tech and 'conversation'!


Greg Tingle

I largely agree with Matty : ) I'm just back from chairing CAP Down Under, the world's leading iGaming conference, which finally made its way down under, hence the name. Apart from the odd newspaper website post, we largely did own own media, as often traditional news media doesn't shot that much interest in the online casino sector (unless there's a scandal attached, like an OJ Simpson casino theft tie on or UltimateBet - Absolute Poker insider trading scenario, which is being covered by 60 Minutes in the United States). So, many of us have blogged about it, and were interviewed by the CAP side arm, the newly created, CAP TV, which I understand will soon be one of the hottest programs on YouTube, if not the entire internet. CAP Magazine will also be doing significant coverage of the happenings. Casino news is financial sector news and technology news, which is big news! Even Marvel Comics are now involved thanks to their deal with NextGen Gaming and CryptoLogic, Richard Branson's got Virgin Games, PKR is like a SecondLife.com type of casino room (but makes money), and it's big enough for the Crown Casino operations director to attend and a number of folks to make the 20 something hour flight from the U.S and Canada. I don't need to force the point about how big sports betting is in Australia, which is carried by the likes of Betfair, Centrebet, EzyBet (Gold Coast Titan's deal), IASbet, and 888.com has signed Aussie sports starts like Shane Warne and Jeff Fenech playing poker as part of the campaigns. How big is iGaming? Well, big enough where some of the industry movers and shakers are listed in Forbes and NextGen Gaming, based at North Sydney, often receives business awards, recently making the Deloitte top 50 Fastest Growing Technology companies in Australia. It's also no secret that people have been turning off TV's and turning on games for a number of years now. Even the ABC has 'Good Game' and one of the Australian networks is getting the next series of Cybershack ready. LiveNews.com and Fox Sports Online has a ton of sports betting coverage (and advertising). The crossover between games for fun and gaming for money has some concerned, however the games carry a "play for fun" and "play for money" option, and there are a number of motions alive in Australian parliament regarding monitoring the industry. That's how big and newsworthy this industry vertical is. Much more industry specific and mainstream news coverage is coming up on the iGaming and online casino industry, and its going to be big political news also, you can bet on it (at a number of online casinos). More on this at Media Man Australia and Casino News Media.


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