Guest contributor 13
no 1 2010 | NEWSBOUND | www.tolerans.com
Print in the midst of a multiplatform world By Dr Mario Garcia, CEO/Founder, Garcia Media
I
t is not just coincidence that almost every day, before 11 in the morning, someone will ask me the question of questions for people in our business: do you think that newspapers will survive? Will there be a printed newspaper in the year 2020 and beyond? It is also not a coincidence that during the 2010 conference, ‘The Power of the Tablet’, at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies the topic of print survival appeared frequently with many of the speakers, including me. As the oldest person speaking to the group - I was also the director of the conference - I made sure that the answer to the question came out loud and clear. That print is here to stay and we will always want to have contact with ink and paper. Consequently, we as journalists have an obligation to make sure that there is a person in every newspaper organization whose task is to study the relevance of print and to nurture it. To find ways to enrich the printed product as part of moving towards a true multi-platform operation, which is,indeed essential for future growth and survival. Perhaps there is no better proponent of the “print is eternal” concept than author William Powers, whose new book, ‘Hamlet’s Blackberry’, has just come out. I came across William Powers at a WAN (World Association of Newspapers) conference in Amsterdam in 2008. and still remember the impact that his words had on me. His keynote presentation was titled “The Eternal Power of Print” and his statement on why paper will endure made and impact on me. “There are cognitive, cultural and social dimensions to the human-paper dynamic that come into play every time any kind of paper, from a tiny Post-it note to a groaning Sunday newspaper, is used to convey, retrieve or store information,“ he says. “Paper does these jobs in a way that pleases us, which is why for centuries we
What are the most important things to do to succeed with your printed newspaper?
1
Know your audience: the most important thing for a newspaper to do today is to focus on its audience. The newspaper that is for everybody ends up being for nobody.
2
Emphasize local news: the world is a neighborhood, and we want our newspaper to cover our ”real neighborhood” as thoroughly as possible. There are no small or insignificant stories when it comes to the local scene.
3
Make it in a convenient format: a compact size that is held together gives it that magazine feel which increases the reader pleasure.
4
Be part of a multiplatform media environment: some of your readers wish to have the news in print, others prefer the mobile phone or online edition, or a tablet edition. Create an environment in which print thrives because it is a part of what I call the ”quartet” of platforms.
have liked having it around. It’s also why we will never give it up as a medium.“ Paper in the time of the tablets
Today, however, we have choices to make on how we receive our information. I never for a moment thought that online editions of newspapers - or mobile telephones for that matter - could ever replace the experience and functionality of reading a newspaper or magazine that is held together and stays together, with the reader getting a sense of what he has read and what he still has to read,.But I do believe that tablets present are a different story. If there is a digital medium that almost matches the experience of reading a printed product, it is the
iPad and it will probably be the same for many other tablets likely to appear in the near future. While online editions sort of hijacked the printed edition of the newspaper into a world of clicking and scrolling, the tablets are more like a sibling to the printed edition, allowing for the intuitive turning of the pages, but with enhanced storytelling capabilities. While the tablets are here to stay there is no doubt in my mind that newspapers as we know them will continue to exist, but adapting to major changes of how content is organized, sections are presented and becoming “companion” platforms in the midst of a quartet of platforms. The platform quartet
For major media houses, this is already a reality: four platforms through which to present the information to readers/users. As I see it, each of the platforms will perform a specific role: Mobile telephone - presents a breaking news alert , plus services such as maps, tips for best restaurants, movie listings etc. It’s the immediate information at your fingertips when you want it and when you need it. Online editions--extension of the mobile phone in terms of reporting breaking news. Part of the “beep and alert me” cycle in the path of a news story. Printed edition - offering the second day headline of a news story on the first day as well as analyzing and enriching the reading experience. Making the reader wiser through interpretation and dissecting of the news of the day. Tablet editions--the final platform in the quartet. They should have their own editions and their own editor, - a very important point. Tabloets should take storytelling to the next level (with mul-
timedia). One for relaxing, providing that intimate experience that we associate with reading on paper. The newspaper of 2020?
Nobody can predict even such immediate future with a specific statement. But I believe strongly that there will be a printed newspaper in the year 2020. It may be more compact, some even in A4 formats, and it will be a product that co-exists well with other platforms around which it is published. It will have its own place and role. Its editors will have learned to define news differently, and it will be a daily or weekly reminder that not only is print eternal, but the intimacy and disconnectedness that it allows will make it a luxury item that many will want to have around. It is because of this that I believe there has been no better time to be a storyteller. n guest contributor
1Dr. Mario R. Garcia is CEO and founder of Garcia Media, a consulting firm based in Florida, with offices in Germany and Argentina. n