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When the pace gets too fast, only online coverage will do

What is the goal for news organizations and blogs? It should look something like John Cook’s Venture blog the past few weeks.

Two of the hottest technology stories in the past month were centered in Seattle (especially if you live around here): Redfin’s “coming out” party on “60 Minutes” followed by legal action from the national association of realtors and Avvo’s launch which has already brought one lawsuit. (See John’s coverage of Redfin here and Avvo here.

In both cases, John owned the story from the start and the conversation played out on his blog, not Techcrunch or CNET. The players in the story contributed comments to John’s blog posts, too, which added to the vitality of the discussion.

Technically, John is a business reporter for the Seatle Post-Intelligencer. But his blog is the heart of what he does. That’s because he’s committed himself to competing in an extremely difficult space - blogs about technology - and he’s thriving.

The typical newspaper is so far out of the loop with technology coverage that it took several days before most ran a story last month from the Associated Press about Digg’s decision to remove a link from its site that someone had submitted that included codes for some illegal hacking. This industry moves so fast that only through a vibrant online presence can the news organization remain relevant to ongoing coverage and discussion.

Posted by MarkBriggs on Wednesday, June 20, 2007
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Innovation in J-job applications

We know digital innovation is changing the way we do journalism, but what about the way journalists apply for jobs?

The News Tribune has an opening for a staff photographer and our photo editor, Jeremy Harrison, tells me that several have been really creative. Of the 175 applications he has received (the deadline has passed to apply, by the way) those who are trying to put their best multimedia foot forward have created stirring audio slideshows and video projects for their portfolios. One even produced a mini-documentary - about himself - to showcase his video production skills and, you would assume, give the hiring manager a sense of what he’s like in person.

Good idea. I don’t know how many points these creative submissions are scoring, but it looks like another step in the evolution of our business.

Posted by MarkBriggs on Friday, June 08, 2007
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The future is closer than you think

It had been starting to feel like newspapers were catching some momentum toward transforming their operations, but lately I’m feeling an ebb. I see more job cut announcements and rumors around the country, and I received an email from a former colleague who recently moved to a new job within his current corporate chain, but doesn’t like the prospects. Here’s an excerpt:

I liked my job and I’m still living there, but they were making big changes (cuts), shut down the presses and were putting the building up for sale. So it seemed like the move to make over here, plus more money and fewer hours.

But the rumors are of major layoffs here (possibly 25 percent of the staff, announcements expected soon). Not sure if I’ll be a survivor. I may volunteer for any projects you need handled in Tacoma, or ask your advice about the best way to get over to your side of the business.

Let’s hope that as more journalists are ready for this “side of the business” - whether through curiosity or preservation - news companies will be ready to integrate them into the digital operation and maximize the opportunity. The online audience is ready and growing and publishers would be able to realize more revenues if they more fully commit themselves to publishing digitally.

Are you waiting for the job cuts to hit? Or are you preparing for a digital future that is a lot closer at hand than you think.

Posted by MarkBriggs on Tuesday, June 05, 2007
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