AllBritton Communications gambles on journalism of the future
Allbritton Communications has signed on Josh Harris, now-former Washington Post Political editor, and Jim Vanderhei, renowned political reporter, as well as a team of other well-known journalists, to work on its latest multimedia political news enterprise. The project is to create a web-based political coverage platform, in partnership with traditional media owned by Allbritton.
The goal is to compete with traditional media for any and all coverage of national politics, Congress and Capitol Hill.
The newspaper Capitol Leader – which Harris and Vanderhei will lead, ABC affiliate WJLA-TV, NewsChannel 8, and CBS will join forces – that is, story carriage, interviews, and features presented on CBS – to provide the web platform with its news.
“This is the future of political journalism,” said Chairman of Allbritton Communications, Robert Allbritton. “Our ambitious goal is (…) to provide that coverage in whatever form and whenever consumers want it.”
The web platform will take advantage of its medium, by emphasizing conversational journalism, interactivity and increased consumer-reporter transparency, taking the audience behind the scenes of news coverage.
“We believe many of the old ways of journalism do not fit the new demands of the modern media,” said Frederick J. Ryan Jr., President of Allbritton Communications.
This venture emanates from a new perspective on political reporting, and journalism in general. As noted by Jim Romenesko from the Poynter Institute, “while other traditional news organizations are cutting back on resources and their commitment to political journalism, Allbritton is planning to invest heavily in the next generation of journalism.”
Probably what traders would call a high-risk high-return investment. That’s why AllBritton acquired the competency of big names in political reporting. Vanderhei didn’t seem the least worried: "We will put together the best political reporting team in the country today and deliver the news the way people want it: fast, fair and first."
Source: Poynter.org
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Allbritton Communications has signed on Josh Harris, now-former Washington Post Political editor, and Jim Vanderhei, renowned political reporter, as well as a team of other well-known journalists, to work on its latest multimedia political news enterprise.
It's John Harris, not Josh. It's VandeHei, not Vanderhei. They haven't signed on a team of other well known journalists. They said they're going to, but no one yet. It's not Allbritton's latest multimedia political news enterprise; it's Allbritton's only multimedia political news enterprise.
And here is my take on it.