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Windsor Digital

Handmade digital strategy from the heartland.

The newspaper biz pokes a thumb in the eyes of those trying to help

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One of the most tireless supporters of fixing the news business is Jeff Jarvis. But today, you can practically hear the frustration and resignation in his voice as he describes the API’s closed-door conference:

What they should be doing is asking for help, ideas, perspectives, models, worldviews, and suggestions from outside their industry.

Instead, they will be “a facilitated discussion of concrete steps the industry can take to reverse its declines in revenue, profit and shareholder value.”

If they haven’t figured out those steps by now, I’d say getting them into a room together isn’t going to do it.

If you’ve lost Jarvis, you just may have lost the war.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. <MOAN>

    This is not surprising. No Jeff, you know what most of these guys need to do?

    1) They need to be paid for performance. And their performance has been DISMAL.

    2) They need to open up the doors and listen: to others outside their industry and to their own staffs.

    3) They need to take a few real, smart calculated risks — and I don't mean another friggin' newspaper redesign.

    4) They need to stop going to these emergency closed door conferences where they'll talk about all the tired old things they've tried, then go off for a few drinks and play a few rounds of golf. No, instead, they need to attend things like social media conferences and “tweetups” and other geekfests. Find good people, good ideas, and bring them into the newsroom and incubate them.

    How frustrating. I need to stop reading your blog, Tim.

  3. Yes! I want to be that reader who only wants to read about the positive things that are being done in the newspaper business. Just like that rare news reader who criticizes the industry for not writing enough positive stories.

  4. Yes! I want to be that reader who only wants to read about the positive things that are being done in the newspaper business. Just like that rare news reader who criticizes the industry for not writing enough positive stories.

  5. Yes! I want to be that reader who only wants to read about the positive things that are being done in the newspaper business. Just like that rare news reader who criticizes the industry for not writing enough positive stories.