Results matching “the rise to bro”

The success of Brazilian newspapers may be a result of a growing economy that gave rise to better education and a middle class that wishes to belong to the "mainstream reading public", reports The Readership Institute (RI). Internet usage remains relatively low in the country, so Brazilians look to the daily papers, "their anchor to the world."

Metropolitan newspapers in Australia saw their readership rise in the April to June quarter, according to Roy Morgan Research figures.

Of 33 newspapers and magazines surveyed in the Australian market, readership of 19 increased and 14 fell.

However, online readership of newspapers has slowed in Australia, and the circulation of most print editions has fallen in the April to June quarter.

The Age was among the newspapers bucking the overall trend. Its circulation has increased by 0.5% Monday to Friday to 208,000, by 0.2% on Saturdays to 301,500 and by 1.1% on Sundays to 227,500. The Monday to Friday circulation figure is the highest The Age has recorded since 1997, and the 227,500 figure registered for The Sunday Age is its highest since the newspaper was launched in 1989, according to the newspaper's owner, Fairfax Media.

The size of the market for newspapers has declined slightly in the past year. An average 20,216 fewer weekday copies were sold around the country in the latest quarter, 46,464 fewer copies sold on Saturdays and 66,501 fewer copies sold on Sundays.

Source: Journalism.co.uk and theage.com.au

Four out of the five online news sources that experienced the largest increase in unique users since July 2007 year-on-year were newspaper Web sites, according to a Nielsen Online study which tracked 30 current and global news outlets.

New York Daily News was the biggest increase in unique users, growing by 66% to 4.3 million, despite ranking No.29 on the list. Cox Newspapers' unique users rose by 57% to 5.8 million. Advance's papers grew by 42% to 8 million unique users whereas New York Times rose by 38% to 19.5 million.

MSNBC had the highest number of uniques, having increades by 44% to 37.5 million.

Gannett papers had a 4% decline to 13.2 million uniques. USA Today fell by 2% to 10.4 million and The Washington Post decreased by 2% to 8.9 million.

Editor and Publisher provide a list of the Top 30 Online Current Events & Global News Destinations for last month, compared to July 2007:

Media Oulet - July '08 Unique Audience (000) - July '07 Unique Audience (000)

MSNBC Digital Network -- 37,516 -- 26,015
Yahoo! News -- 35,225 -- 32,674
CNN Digital Network -- 32,977 -- 29,757
AOL News -- 22,010 -- 23,103
NYTimes.com -- 19,513 -- 14,149

Tribune Newspapers -- 16,177 -- 12,218
ABCNEWS Digital Network -- 13,534 -- 9,876
Gannett Newspapers and Newspaper Division -- 13,254 -- 13,812
Fox News Digital Network -- 11,540 -- 9,343
Google News -- 10,776 -- 8,973

USATODAY.com -- 10,404 -- 10,611
McClatchy Newspaper Network -- 10,380 -- 8,338
CBS News Digital Network -- 9,197 -- 9,203
WorldNow -- 9,070 -- 7,604
washingtonpost.com -- 8,935 --- 9,157

Hearst Newspapers Digital -- 8,225 -- 7,596
Advance Internet -- 8,044 -- 5,648
MediaNews Group Newspapers -- 7,574 -- 6,843
Topix -- 6,229 -- 5,949
Cox Newspapers -- 5,842 -- 3,723

Slate -- 5,763 -- 4,875
IB Websites -- 5,633 -- 6,202
BBC News -- 5,253 -- 6,408
Gannett Broadcasting -- 5,010 -- 3,893
Fox Television Stations -- 4,940 -- 4,550

New York Post Holdings -- 4,937 -- 3,952
Boston.com -- 4,891 -- 4,029
MailOnline -- 4,645 -- 4,137
Daily News Online Edition -- 4,301 -- 2,586
NPR -- 4,282 -- 3,327

Source: Editor and Publisher

Citigroup analysts predicted that Amazon's Kindle e-reader sales are expected to grow to 380,000 this year, reported The Register today.

A spring 2008 Media Mark Research & Intelligence (MRI) survey, commissioned by the Newspaper National Network (NNN), reveals a 2.5% rise in readers to 80.6 million, from 78.7 million in the same period last year.

"In a challenging environment for newspaper publishers, the MRI results are welcome news," said Jason Klein, president and CEO of NNN. "Readership growth is good news for advertisers since it means more ad exposures."

Although newspaper circulation fell for the six months ending March 2008, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, by 3.5% for dailies and 4.5% for Sunday editions, overall readership still grew.

This can be attributed to publishers focusing on "core" subscribers, and cutting circulation of third-party copies, which went to infrequent readers. Newspaper websites may also be drawing people to the print addition, reported NNN.

These numbers continue last years trend; the NNN said that the fall 2007 numbers were also up 1.8%. These increases, however, are the first since the measure was created in 2003, when 85.3 million people read a newspaper.

Source: Editor & Publisher

Nielsen Online has reported that more than 80% of online newspapers in the top 30 recorded increases in the number of unique visitors for the month of June, compared to the same month a year ago.

There were some exceptions, including the Houston Chronicle -- which fell 44% in June -- and Ottaway Newspapers, falling 30%, however,  the majority enjoyed significant increases. New York's Daily News Online jumped 109% year-over-year in June to 3.8 million uniques. Newsday increased uniques by 73% to 3.0 million visitors, and monthly uniques at Village Voice Media was up 70% to 2.2 million.

Below is the list of the top 30 newspaper Web sites provided by Nielsen. The percent change compares June 2008 uniques with June 2007 uniques.

NYTimes.com -- 17,650 -- 41%
USATODAY.com -- 9,626 -- 12%
Washingtonpost.com -- 9,062 -- 11%
Wall Street Journal Online -- 6,441 -- 52%
L.A. Times -- 6,190 -- 21%

Boston.com -- 5,226 -- 23%
Chicago Tribune -- 4,920 -- 58%
New York Post -- 4,617 -- 51%
Daily News Online Edition --- 3,803 -- 109%
SFGate.com/San Francisco Chronicle -- 3,621 -- (-8%)

Newsday -- 3,031 -- 73%
Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- 2,733 -- (-4%)
Chicago Sun-Times -- 2,669 -- 34%
International Herald Tribune -- 2,454 -- 54%
The Politico -- 2,437 -- 43%

Village Voice Media -- 2,217 -- 70%
DallasNews.com - The Dallas Morning News -- 2,213 -- 26%
The Houston Chronicle -- 2,158 -- (-44%)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer -- 1,925 -- 4%
The Seattle Times -- 1,924 -- 42%

Star Tribune -- 1,844 -- 55%
MercuryNews.com -- 1,669 -- 48%
Azcentral.com -- 1,621 -- (-8%)
tampabay.com -- 1,579 -- 16%
MLive.com -- 1,578 -- 80%

The San Diego Union-Tribune -- 1,554 -- 51%
NJ.com -- 1,539 -- 0%
Ottaway Newspapers -- 1,485 -- (-30%)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel -- 1,450 -- 33%
KansasCity.com -- 1,447 -- 33%

Source: Editor & Publisher

Paul Chaney has come up with a list of essential blog copywriting tips for any bloggers, reports practical ecommerce.

He states that a veteran magazine editor once told him: "Never edit your own stuff." However, with the rise of the independent blogger and rapid 24/7 news culture we sometimes have no choice.

Here are his key tips:

• Use spellcheck. Chaney states, "if you're blogging for business, I think correctly spelled words along with the use of proper grammar is a non-negotiable."  He also points out that a common error when creating web copy is saying "you" when the poster meant to say "your."  Spellcheck will not catch that error.
• Proofread the post using preview mode. Chaney says it is better to print your copy and proofread it that way. The main point being to proofread the posting.
• Read the piece aloud. Chaney believes its, "another way for your brain to wrap itself around the text and insure it has a logical, readable flow."
• Practice using acceptable style (AP style), but not at the expense of forsaking your own. Despite this Chaney says it is important to develop your own voice.
  

Source: practical ecommerce

The Associated Press (AP) has announced its Mobile News Network (MNN), a new native application for iPhone and iPod touch, is now available for free download from the Apple App Store.

The Mobile News Network, based on the previous web incarnation, "automatically detects location, allows readers to browse full stories while out of network reception, and provides navigation customization... viewers [can] save stories of interest and flip through photos and videos without delay," according to an AP release.

In an April interview, AP VP and Director of strategy Jim Kennedy told the Weblog: "There are new points of entry for the young consumer, sometimes they're based on content, in some cases they're based on device."

AP is trying to latch on to the iPhone's incredible success in the US. Speaking of delivering local news on mobiles, "Our hope is that it becomes a standard button on the US-distributed iPhones," he said.

The application also seems to embrace the rise of citizen journalism. MNN has a "Send Report" option, allowing users to report first-hand accounts and send photographs directly to AP editors.

The AP release follows last week's launch of the International Herald Tribune's iPhone-optimized site.

Source: AP Press Release

Part 1 discussed how the planned changes at The New York Times and International Herald Tribune will help the NYT's continuous news offerings, and how these changes could affect the organization and interaction between both newsrooms.

Part 2 examines how The New York Times intends to:
- Further compete against the Financial Times and Wall Street Journal internationally, and ways in which newspapers can reinforce their international reach.
- Use the strength of its online brand while safeguarding the IHT's popular print brand name.

The Weblog spoke to Jim Roberts, Digital Editor at The New York Times, and Martin Gottlieb, who was appointed to the newly created position of Editor, Global Edition.

How newspapers can become international brands, the NYT joins the race

Until now, the Times hasn't specifically catered to overseas advertisers and readers.

"We need to be agile," said IHT publisher Stephen Dunbar-Johnson, "to compete much more aggressively, nose to nose, with The Financial Times, Wall Street Journal and anybody else who is competing for our readers and advertisers."

No doubt that the Times actually borrowed the continuous news outpost idea from the aforementioned competitors, which have been relying on their foreign bureaus to provide round the clock coverage.

The staff memo reaffirmed the NYT's "ambitious plans to expand in the region (Asia), particularly in India." In June, the IHT announced a partnership with the India-based Deccan Chronicle to print the Tribune's world business section in the Financial Chronicle.

With the rise of digital publishing, many news organizations are seeking to grow a previously inaccessible international readership by:

- launching a print edition abroad: several papers have rolled out editions away from home this past year, such as the FT's recently launched Middle East edition in Abu Dhabi, WSJ's partnership with business paper Mint in India, the Daily Mail's partnership with India Today to publish the Mail Today, or The Times of London's Polish edition.

- investing in an online international section: In Germany, referential weekly Der Spiegel launched an English-language International edition on its website in 2004. Five fulltime staffers are dedicated to translating Der Spiegel's content and rewriting it with an international perspective, as well as doing their own international-minded original reporting (the full case study is featured in Trends in Newsrooms 2008). The Guardian adopted a different approach, by launching a separate, foreign-based, US website, Guardian America. The Guardian is reportedly considering similar ventures in other regions.

- simply reinforcing their focus on international news in their regular coverage: the Daily Telegraph's website in the UK, which was neck to neck with the Guardian in terms of traffic in April, claims nearly two thirds of its visitors are from overseas. A well-indexed website helps to brings in a significant number of 'light' international users through search engines.

Merging "co-branded" websites but not print: a branding issue

The NYT's approach is a combination of the first two strategies: the print IHT now serves as The Times' 'global edition' (see picture), while maintaining its trademark brand name. With the proposed online merger, the NYT could also follow the second route, by hosting an international edition online, without having to extensively change its workflows (see Part 1).

The rationale to merge the websites is clearly explained in the memo: according to WebTrends, NYT's website boasts a strong international audience and 58 million global users, compared to iht.com's seven million.

"The global landscape for online news is highly competitive, making scale, speed and resources essential to success. Therefore we have determined that the best future online for the IHT and the NYT globally is through a joint international presence," said the memo.

However, the memo doesn't explicitly say why this won't be the case in print:

"The IHT should become the international print edition of the NYT, whether it is formally branded that way or not."

The main issue at stake is one of branding. "In print, there have been at least a couple of studies that show that among Tribune newspaper readers there is a great identification with the brand, that the brand means something to readers," said Gottlieb.

"More than the name, what accompanies the name, an international perspective, a sense of calling the best stories from The Times and augmenting them with unique reporting," was a combination that many readers liked.

As news organizations seek to grow their international reach, this consideration probably holds true for many that have established a reputable brand name on a local or national scale. However strong the brand name, its association with a particular place or country can potentially play against that news outlet on the international scene.

Source: New York Times - Media Bistro - Jim Roberts, Digital Editor The New York Times - Martin Gottlieb, Editor, Global Edition

At a time when any local or national news outlet can potentially become an international online brand, and as newsrooms adapt to a 24-hour news cycle, editors can learn from The New York Times' most recent attempt to 'kill' both birds with one stone.

Last week, top execs from The Times and the International Herald Tribune announced plans to merge iht.com and nytimes.com into a co-branded international section, in order to increase both sites' reach and appeal to international advertisers.

In this two-part series, the Weblog spoke to Jim Roberts, Digital Editor at The New York Times, and Martin Gottlieb, who was appointed to the newly created position of Editor, Global Edition.

Through these moves, The Times intends to accomplish at least four ostensible goals:

Part 1:
- Build an outpost for its Continuous News Desk in Paris, and eventually Hong Kong.
- Integrate operations, streamline some resources by increasing efficiency and avoiding overlap.

Part 2:
- Reinforce its international reach and further compete against the Financial Times and Wall Street Journal.
- Use the strength of NYT's online brand while safeguarding the IHT's popular print brand name.

IHT: an outpost for the Times' continuous news

Although the proposed changes are currently undergoing a consultation process with the IHT's works council, as required by French law, the process of integration of both papers began ever since the NYT acquired full control of the IHT in 2003, and has accelerated in past months.

In Feb., NYT executive editor Bill Keller had already announced plans to integrate operations and develop an "organic, global, 24-hour news operation," in order "to create a Continuous News outpost in Paris."

In May, the IHT dropped its 142-year-old logo from its nameplate to replace it with the phrase "The Global Edition of the New York Times."

"That says, we are one, and we are," although both arms are managed separately, said Jim Roberts, digital editor at The Times.

Video: Roberts talks about the 'integration' of both newspapers. Footage was collected during an interview at the 15th World Editors Forum in Sweden.


Thanks to this outpost and the six-hour time difference, the NYT is now able to upload content to its site nearly 24 hours a day (from about 6am to 1am, New York time). The paper eventually hopes to establish a similar outpost at the IHT's Asian headquarters in Hong Kong in the next six months.

The creation of these outposts does not mean that the IHT is becoming a full-blown Paris bureau for The Times. "We have a Paris bureau," said Roberts, "and the newsroom of the IHT still has a print edition and right now they still have a website."

Integration, streamlining resources: evolution, no revolution

Since all proposed changes are undergoing a consultation process, editors couldn't give any firm preview of how workflows could be affected.

In the past, there has been "very regular contact between individual desks at the Times and corresponding desks at the IHT," said Martin Gottlieb, newly appointed editor of the Global edition. Many IHT editors come from The Times, regularly do edits on NYT pieces, and this past year IHT-written articles have appeared on nytimes.com with no distinctive byline.

However, there is no formal process of exchange between both newsrooms, and "There have been a couple of occasions when we've had IHT and NYT reporters covering the same thing," said Roberts.

The appointment of Gottlieb as editor of the Global Edition - note, no mention of the IHT in his title - is significant in that respect. In addition to fulfilling the role of editor of the paper, his mission will be to ensure that staff understands both papers are "two parts of one news-gathering operation, that should work in unison as much as possible in delivering the news 24 hours a day seven days a week," said Gottlieb.

A series of new editorial appointments at the IHT will be the symbols of this top-down integration. "There will be people coordinating the work of both staffs to, pretty much, make them as much as possible act as one staff," said Gottlieb.

For example, Alison Smale, who becomes European editor of the global newsroom, will be responsible for "coordinating the work of all NYT and IHT reporters in the region from the IHT newsroom in Paris," said the memo. To oversee the process, The Times also named Alan Flippen "Editor, Newsroom Organization."

It seems too early to say whether the planned reforms will lead to radical changes in workflows or content. Evolution, not revolution, said Roberts.

Currently, an IHT reporter based in Hong Kong might build upon a Times' story about the rise of airline fuel prices by interviewing Asian carriers, whose input might not have been as relevant to the core readership of the Times in the US. Likewise, an IHT story published in the Times might be fine-tuned to be more pertinent to the American audience (see the example of Der Spiegel in Part 2, looking at different newspaper approaches towards international editions).

Future workflows will likely build upon these current processes, rather than start from scratch. "It's continuing synergies that are taking place and maximizing them and regularizing them," said Gottlieb.

The planned changes can also be seen as an attempt to streamline resources - terminology often equivocated with cost cuts and layoffs. But according to Gottlieb, there are no planned newsroom layoffs at this point (this is subject to change during the next six months). It is possible that an online merger of iht.com and nytimes.com could lead to redundancies for some technical Web production positions.


Editors couldn't comment on any upcoming changes concerning the IHT's planned print redesign.

Stay tuned for Part 2, which will examine The Times' international branding strategy, and how newspapers can grow a previously inaccessible international readership.


Source: New York Times - Media Bistro - Jim Roberts, Digital Editor The New York Times - Martin Gottlieb, Editor, Global Edition

Yet another video of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, shot "off the record" in the studios of France 3 prior to his televised interview on June 3rd, has gone viral.

In this case though, the bigger issue shaking French media is whether this video should have been 'news' in the first place, or whether it's simply an example of media outlets rushing to create buzz, a phenomenon exacerbated by the rise of online news.

The video, which was first posted by the online-only news site Rue89 on YouTube, has already received nearly a million views (similar to a video of Sarkozy insulting a civilian captured by Le Parisien).

A renowned blogger, Laurent Goaguen, criticized Rue89's decision:

"I'm slightly ashamed that Rue89's newsroom release this dirty thing, acquired in dubious circumstances and that doesn't bring any information. When political engagement, sense of urgency and the race to scoops obscure, to that extent, the professional duties of journalists..."

Another blog, Caréagit, expressed its disgust for "gutter journalism."

Rue89 editor-in-chief Pascal Riché argued that "this video is rich in information concerning the President, his relations with media, and the atmosphere within France Télévisions."

According to Rue89, France 3 threatened a lawsuit if the site doesn't remove the video and give the names of staffers who leaked the footage.

Source: Le Monde - Rue89