16/01/17 - Regional publishers: how do those that remain survive? (38)

16/01/17 - Regional publishers: how do those that remain survive? (38)

While it has been the case in recent years that local weekly newspapers have seen a reduction in print sales, it appears at least in the case of a reasonable number of regional dailies that their online audiences have been increasing. With this, (regional) publishers have been working to reinvent their business models to adapt to this change in platform.

The changing face of content

More 'serious journalism'/'hard news' isn't necessarily what the general public are more receptive to and actually 'softer' stories are usally what they take to more. This idea of evergreen content seems to be something that's now becoming increasingly prevalent too whether it be about stories to do with places to eat or even walk.

Capitalising on new channels

Journalists that once used to work solely on newspapers now see themselves having to become content providers across a number of platforms whether it be Twitter or TV. Social networks like Facebook have meant that publishers also have to receive training on what it takes to develop 'high-quality posts with local relevance and a high propensity for sharing.' Through the use of machine learning, technology is also being used which allows journalists to know optimum time and place to actually post stories at as oppose to just doing it anyhow. Something notable that was said by Henry Faure-Walker, the chief executive of a publisher of a number of titles, was that although Facebook acts: 'a competitor for ad dollars, it is better to work with them and reap the benefits of community engagement in our cities and towns than treat them as the enemy.'

Tapping into data

Small teams of 'data units' now work to crunch data that they publishers receive. This same data is what gets interpreted locally to be the driving force behind a story. In the case of Trinity Mirror, their data unit has managed to get funding from Google which has meant that they've been able to create an app called Perspecs which as well as working as a news aggregation service, also lets readers see other perspectives of certain stories.

Finding new ways to survive

Although online is an area that regional papers have decided to go into, with its ad revenue increase, they still see diversification into other areas as being imperative. This can range all the way from mobile apps and general e-commerce to even leisure offerings like ice rinks.

• Local weekly newspapers losing an average 9.2% of sales in the second half of 2015 compared to the same period the year before
• Facebook saw its digital unique users rise by 7% year-on-year in November 2016, reaching 22.4m
• 30% of Newsquest’s ad revenues now come from digital

This article is particularly interesting in seeing what exactly regional newspapers are going to do ascertain their survival over at least the next decade. Abandoning print seems like the main thing that's going to be done while simultaneously diversifying into other, often unrelated industries. What was particularly noteworthy was the statement by Henry Faure-Walker. In saying establishing that Facebook is a definite competitor to them as a regional news publisher, he also makes it clear that actually working with them, could be what really needs to be done. With the way the general public are taking to social networks like Facebook, this seems like a pretty informed take on things, and maybe doing this is what'll boost the 'community engagement' that regional papers are supposed to achieve.

16/01/17 - UK media chiefs called in by minister for talks on fake news (37)

16/01/17 - UK media chiefs called in by minister for talks on fake news (37)

'Accuracy' within the media/journalism, is something that has been become increasingly questionable in recent times. This has been further evidenced by UK ministers like Matt Hancock calling in media newspaper representatives to discuss the issue. Amidst the 'fake news' craze taking place in the USA post-election, it's clear that other nations are concerned about the impact the dissemination of fake news on the internet could have. The 'value chain' of online news is something in particular that is set to be analysed in the hope of eventually finding a solution that can ensure content creators are fairly rewarded for their production of news. The threat that fake news can have on journalism is highlighted particularly through the fear that it could undermine the element of democracy that there is, the Labour party having particular concerns about this. They say that the 'dominance of tech giants like Google and Facebook' with the fact that we tend to use them to access most of the news gives them a great amount of power which governments will have to come to terms with. This is intensified by the fact that these giants are posing a greater threat to (high-quality) journalism with how advertising revenues increasingly go to them as oppose to the actual content provider/newspaper.

The fact that even the UK government is expressing their concerns over the influence of fake news, shows that it's something that is without a doubt going to be perceived as a high-level threat to modern society. This is not just in terms of the fact that it threatens the 'democratic foundation' had by countries like the UK, but also as this issue of advertising revenues being siphoned off by the digital/e-media platform gets even worse with the influx of fake news. 

Identities and the Media: Reading the riots

Identities and the Media: Reading the riots

1.

Some of the language used in description of young people in the riots ranged from the very word 'riot' itself, to an 'orgy of brutality' to even 'young thugs with fire in their eyes and nothing but destruction on their mind.' Images also contributed to this anarchic, negative representation of young people with them commonly pertaining to the stereotypes that there were of them during that event. Hooded, young and black males was what covered a number of newspapers, working to reinforce the dominant stereotype that there is of young black people, with this almost definitely linking into Medhurst's shorthand value judgments.

2.

David Owens mentions this piece in reference to this concept of  'class demonisation.' Media coverage of the riots saw members of the working class being antagonised and scrutinised to a level where they were almost displayed as a threat to society, particularly the middle-upper class, itself.

3.

The typical representation of young boys is usually of them being menaces and rebels as oppose to an actual aid to society. coverage. The 2005 IPSOS/MORI survey found that '40% of newspaper articles featuring young people focused on violence, crime or anti-social behaviour; and that 71% could be described as having a negative tone.'

4.

Stanley Cohen's moral panic can be linked into the coverage of the riots as the reporting of it presented its participants as threat to the values of society. Whether it was through language or the images used of young people as 'young thugs,' they made people question the stability of the establishment that there currently is in society.

5.

Some of the elements of media and popular culture that were blamed for the riots were rap music, reality TV and also (violent) video games.

6.

Social media was blamed for the riots as it was the main platform used in actually organising some of the demonstrations that took place in it whether it was Facebook, Twitter or Blackberry Messenger. This is something that was also found in the Arab Spring of 2011, although the Western media have cited its use there as positive, maybe because it didn't pose a threat to their domestic societies.

7.

The two-step flow theory can be linked into the riots with the way that 'commentarists' gave their own opinion on the events that rolled out. Consisting predominantly of politicians, journalists and others, these groups used their platform to disseminate their own opinions (and agendas) to the masses. Even with a lack of evidence that came with these opinions, they were still published with the main intention of spreading the ideology possessed by the 'commentarist' behind it.

8.

Media scholars like Henry Jenkins would view the 'tsunami' as being a sign that the media has become a lot more participatory then just having the public be passive readers to the publications released by news institutions. While it can be said that this represents an increase in the democratisation of the media, it still has to be remembered that the top corporations still dominate the industry in an unmatched fashion regardless (Pareto's Law).

9.

The right-wing responses of the causes of the riots mainly lied funnily enough, in left-wing values. Things such as the welfare state that there is in the U.K has: 'bred a generation of young people with no respect for their elders and betters, and no 'moral compass.''

10.

Left-wing responses for the causes entail things like the inequality within our society making it almost inevitable that something like this would take place. Areas in which there was already poverty and deprivation is where things started popping off, and this is without the mention of the amount of cuts made to youth services.

11.

Personally, I'd find myself more aligned with the left-wing response to the cause of the riots. Cuts to facilities predominantly used by young people have meant they often find themselves 'lost' for things to actually engage themselves with. As well as this it has to be understood that they in part, sparked from what's already been growing tension between young people and the police force in the UK, the death of Mark Duggan being the last straw that broke the camel's back in this case.

12.

Capitalism can be blamed for the riot as both bankers and politicians now have reached a level in society where 'it has become acceptable [...] to lie and cheat.' With this it's not that remarkable to find that the young have followed in suit of this (copycat).

13.

It appears that the 'rioters' weren't really given the opportunity to explain the reasons for their participation. Rather what we got were the views of historians and professors like David Starkey, someone completely uninformed about the issue at hand, on why things played out in the way that they did.

14.

Causes outlined here are:

• Opportunism - 'chance to obtain "free stuff" or sought to justify the theft'
• Lack of money/jobs
• Feeling of unfair treatment of comparison with other groups
• Scrapping of the education maintenance allowance

15.

In my opinion, I think the riots are representative of a lot more of a deeper problem that there is within society. The hostility that the 'rioters' have towards establishment forces like the police and the government isn't 'just because,' and actually it's just part of what's been a growing schism between opposing sides. Strong prison sentences aren't the solution to take and rather what should be done is actually healing the scars that are there within communities that have been as a result of things like cuts. More punishment is only going to widen the division that there already is.

09/01/17 - The Sun losses exceed £60m as ad slump and hacking charges take toll (36)

09/01/17 - The Sun losses exceed £60m as ad slump and hacking charges take toll (36)

Recently, it has seemed like Rupert Murdoch's The Sun just hasn't been able to catch a break. In 2016, they saw losses of more than £60 million. Although in 2015 they were at £79m, amounts like this are still huge. Contributors to it are declines in print advertising, redundancy costs and also phone-hacking charges which almost seem like they'll never leave the paper alone. How huge these losses are can be displayed particularly effective when you pit the paper against The Times. They reported a (pretax) loss of £5m in 2015 to the 3rd of July, mainly due to redundancy restructuring costs. Revenue for The Sun has also a drop of £10m, with a decline in print advertising not being able to be offset by other areas e.g. the paywall on its website (now no longer in place).

• The Sun made a loss of more than £60m last year as steep declines in print advertising, redundancy costs and phone-hacking charges battered the tabloid
• Times reported a pretax loss of £5m in the year to 3 July, down from a profit of £8.8m in 2015
• The Sun fared significantly worse, notching up a pretax loss of £62.8m for the same period last year
• The Sun narrowed its losses (£79m in 2015), mainly due to a significant reduction in charges relating to legal claims and costs relating to phone hacking
• The Sun also spent £14.8m on one-off restructuring costs and significantly boosted sales and marketing spend, from £55m to £75.9m
• Total revenues fell from £456m to £446m as a steep decline in print advertising failed to be offset by income from other areas
• The Sun said it had made £16m in profit last year, almost half the £29m in 2015
• Total revenues barely budged year-on-year, dropping from £342.5m to £341.6m
• Times Newspapers Limited, said there was a “solid” performance in print sales income, which grew to 182,000
• The Times spent almost £33m on sales and marketing last year

It'll be interesting how exactly The Sun deal with these losses this year. The introduction of a paywall definitely didn't work to be able to offset this, so what exactly will is unknown at the time. Perhaps the paper will eventually decide to take the approach of The Independent, being online only and perhaps prioritising digital media over the print counterpart and embrace more interactivity between the consumers and the paper.

09/01/16 - Local papers are vital to our democracy. Now section 40 threatens their future (35)

09/01/16 - Local papers are vital to our democracy. Now section 40 threatens their future (35)

The role of local newspapers continues to be undervalued while they help maintain an aspect of democracy in that they allow those that are corrupt, to be held to account whether they be politicians or even property developers. An example of this can be seen with Leeds City Council actually making an apology to the Yorkshire Post for refusing to name 4 councillors not paying their council tax. Things like this and the Liverpool Echo's efforts to push for a reopening of the inquest into the Hillsborough disaster represent the importance that the publications have. Stories like this are said to stem from the strong connection that the papers have between them and their community. Without a local paper, things like the scrutiny of the council as a result of spending cuts wouldn't be able to occur as well as just being able to keep up-to-date with news or information in general. 

Section 40, a drafted piece of legislation intended to be part of the Crime and Courts Act, could threaten this all though. It entails that 'any newspaper that fails to sign up to a regulator backed by a royal charter could be forced to pay its opponents’ legal costs in libel cases, even if it wins.' What this means is that those criticised by the papers could sue these same papers for that criticism. With the trouble local newspapers are already in with their financial issues, the introduction of this legislation could have a real 'crippling effect' on them. The majority of UK newspapers have signed up to the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso), which is capable of fining newspapers up to £1 million. The organisation themselves have made it clear that they will not be signing up to this charter. Local journalists have already expressed their fear for the legal costs that could come to them with this, with it potentially harming their very existence.

What will be very interesting to see is whether or not this drafted legislation will actually be implemented. With those criticised or 'defamed' by the paper actually being able to sue because of this, investigative journalism itself will be threatened. While some might say that the bigger newspapers can just continue it, it has to be understood that it's the local papers who really handle the most cases of it. Things like the reopening of the Hillsborough inquest is representative of this, since without the persistence of the Liverpool Echo, not much progress at all would have been made with the case. So it'll be something to keep an eye on, whether the drafted legislation becomes actual legislation or not. 

02/01/17 - News Corp Australia announces redundancies and $40m cost-cutting (34)

02/01/17 - News Corp Australia announces redundancies and $40m cost-cutting (34)

In a bid to cut down $40 million of costs from Rupert Murdoch's Australian newspapers, 42 full-time equivalent (FTE) roles including journalists, artists and photographers are set to be cut. In doing this, workers in these roles have been offered the opportunity to take voluntary redundancies. If this doesn't occur then forced redundancies will have to take a place as a way of filling this quota. All this is taking place as falls in revenue from print advertising have got worse. Their move to acquire the Australian News Channel, producers of Sky News in Australia and New Zealand, may help see an end to these downcast times. However  for a 'company that had shed 1,000 jobs in the 2012-13 financial year,' it'll seemingly take quite a lot for a real bounce back to occur.

• News Corp Australia is making 42 journalists, artists and photographers redundant in the latest round of cost-cutting in a bid to slash $40m from Rupert Murdoch’s Australian newspapers
• News Corp Australia suffered an 11% fall in advertising revenue in the first quarter

Falls in revenue from print advertising is something that has become quite commonplace within the newspaper industry. The impact of new and digital media shines through with this especially, as companies like Google and Facebook appear now as the culprits of this. This is representative of the fact that regardless of the company, whether it be as big as News Corp or not, no one is immune from the slow death of print media.

02/01/17 - The readers’ editor on Google and editorial independence (33)

02/01/17 - The readers’ editor on Google and editorial independence (33)

In light of recent findings that Google's search engine algorithms had been sabotaged by rightwingers to display stories regarding things like Holocaust denial, the company made the decision to remove the results from the rankings, albeit under a lot of pressure from the Observer. One of the ways in which they applied this pressure was through the paper placing an ad at the top of search results for the cost of £289 saying that: 'Six million Jews really did die. These search results are propagating lies. Please take action.' The journalist who brought light to the story, Carole Cadwalladr, stated in her piece on The Guardian that the reason this approach was taken as oppose to other alternatives was because it was done in 'the only language that Google understands: money.' However irony was found in this when this same news piece found its way in a 'four-page "wraparound" advertisement for Google's new Pixel phone.' Readers of this expressed their dismay and disappointment at these 'mixed messages' and clear undermining of the actual values of the Observer. This here clearly displays the separation that there is between both the advertising and editorial departments of newspapers, and even though advertising is good in assisting to actually pay for journalism, it still should never 'sway the independence of the editorial team and its output.' Funnily enough though in this case, the editor was aware that the wraparound was booked but with Google not being deterred from advertising, he also wasn't deterred from putting a story criticising them in that same issue.

With the notion that advertising has a 'disruptive nature' to newspapers in terms of things like flow and the killing impact it has to the front page of a publication, it is viewed something that 'should be expected rarely.' However, in a time when newspaper revenue is dipping and advertisers are becoming more demanding of what they require, a predicament shows itself where the industry can choose to succumb to commercial pressures or not. These pressures are not helped at all by the fact that newspaper websites too are seeing advertising growth slowing down since revenue is now being siphoned off from news producers by none other than the digital giants themselves, Facebook and Google.

• In 2014-15, global newspaper circulation revenues overtook advertising revenues for the first time, with the 2016 World Press Trends report showing that $90bn (53% of revenue) came from print and digital circulation, compared with $78bn from advertising

I found this article particularly interesting as it brought up the irony that can be found within the journalism industry. Newspapers can often end up taking advertising from companies which they themselves criticise and put under fire. It almost seems the case that things will have to continue being this way too since at this point in time, newspapers need all the money that they can get. While they want advertising to only be accepted here and there, it'll probably be something that occupies increasingly more pages down the line.