Innovation
Structured journalism puts consumers in control of news
In September I wrote about the economics of structured journalism, highlighting the potential for newsrooms to rebundle news as value-accumulating networks of structured information. But what is the market for structure? Why would news consumers want such a radically different way of formatting and consuming news? Why would customers care? Choice. Article-centric journalism has traditionally … Continued
Online news startups explore revenue sources beyond advertising
Revenue was very much on the agenda when more than 100 local news entrepreneurs gathered at the LION Summit in Chicago Oct. 1-3. There were encouraging, if fledgling, signs that some sites are looking beyond banner display advertising. Supplemental sources include crowd-funding, membership programs, sponsored content, and events. For now, however, banner display advertising is … Continued
Examining the new conceptualization of entrepreneurial journalism
The dominant scholarly understanding of and approaches to journalism do not match the variety of practices that make up journalism today. The profession’s recent reconfiguration as a post-industrial, entrepreneurial and altogether atypical way of working calls for new ways to investigate, theorize and teach journalism. Our fellowship project at the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute … Continued
The economics of structure: Could structured journalism make quality journalism sustainable?
Structured journalism, an emerging and somewhat obscure approach to digital news, has been getting a lot of attention lately. The last three months have seen articles in the Columbia Journalism Review and on the websites of The Poynter Institute and Nieman Lab. BBC News Labs published “A Manifesto for Structured Journalism,” and pilot projects are … Continued
Could digital stories, written by journalists, be good medicine for the health care industry?
How can health care and journalism organizations work together to create digital stories that improve both the health care system and an individual’s health? As I seek answers during my RJI Fellowship at the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute, I’ll rely on two life experiences: I’m an ex-health care administrator who later got a Ph.D. … Continued
News startup survey: Revenue growth, capacity challenges
In the chaotic world of online news startups, I think it makes sense to take a long view. Whenever someone asks whether a big breakthrough is coming, I scratch my head. That’s because progress at this time is so incremental — a game of inches, feet, maybe yards but rarely miles — a marathon with no … Continued
Structured journalism: Evaluating journalism beyond the news article
Does the traditional news article still make sense as the primary unit of news in the age of the Internet and smartphone? The text article has been around for centuries, and yet has barely changed with the arrival of digital technologies. Articles still consist of a headline and an undifferentiated block of text. They are … Continued
Embarking on third retirement, Fidler reflects on tech evolutions, his 1981 prediction about tablets
Mobile media scholar’s journalism career extended over more than half a century
Washington Missourian: Print or be printed
I did a “press check” with Washington Missourian Publisher Bill Miller Sr. and General Manager Bill Miller Jr. during a recent Friday afternoon press run and it brought back decades-old memories to this old newspaper guy. But the technology involved in the Missourian’s printing process — electronic transfer of information directly from computer screen to … Continued
Seattle’s Best: Mary Bruno
Don’t overlook the home of Microsoft, Amazon, Zillow and other innovative companies large and small when looking for voices in media thought leadership. Below are observations and insights from a handful of the city’s media leaders that I collected while accompanying a Missouri School of Journalism innovation and entrepreneurship class as they visited each venue.