Chris Schroeder’s editorial in the March 2006 issue
of Media Magazine is a call to action to traditional media companies. Chris knows a thing or two about the subject,
having taken Washington Post/Newsweek Interactive to a leadership position
among national news sites during his tenure as CEO there. He’s often had to bridge the gap from
traditional media old-think to innovation.
Chris makes
the case that traditional media falls prey to linear thinking when it develops
new ideas. As is true in many
industries, they conveniently try to view the world in some form of directed
evolution, moving logically from one media format to the next. He suggests that they reverse their thinking. He challenges them to reinvent their
businesses by shifting time.
“Because if you try a thought
experiment with me and shift time -- the ultimate linear measurement -- a few
questions will lead you to common-sense conclusions. And in answering these
questions, you won't just think about "evolving" the old way of doing
business, but about reinventing it.”
By starting
with the premise that the current on-demand, digital environment is the norm,
traditional media companies can begin to think in terms of future innovations,
versus trying to protect legacy infrastructure with modest alterations to
current businesses.
Rupert
Murdoch made an even bolder statement in his speech this week to a group of old
media old-liners.
"Societies or companies that
expect a glorious past to shield them from the forces of change driven by
advancing technology will fail and fall," he warned. "That applies as
much to my own, the media industry, as to every other business on the
planet."
Murdoch
acknowledges the new generation of media consumers who demand what they want,
when they want it. And he takes the
point even further, to the responsibilities of media in democratic
society.
"Never has the flow of
information and ideas, of hard news and reasoned comment, been more important.
The force of our democratic beliefs is a key weapon in the war against
religious fanaticism and the terrorism it breeds."
News Corp
has long had an interest in online media, having started an ill-fated joint
venture with MCI as early as 1995. Their
recent acquisition of MySpace indicates a better understanding of the dynamics
of the medium and its potential for the future.
While I
agree with both gentlemen, I would extend the point a step further. Media companies – and marketers in general –
need to stop assuming the “us versus them” mentality of creating products and
services for “target audiences”. Social
networking, open source technologies and broadband have combined to create an
environment where active, engaged users can interact directly with each other. Whether it’s creating videos and posting them
to YouTube or blogging political opinions or selling cars to each other, the
so-called long tail can now effectively (and efficiently) interact.
The
challenge for media companies is to understand the dynamics of these
conversations and leverage them. As media
companies are quick to point out, there will always be a role for professional
journalism. But news organizations must
better understand the power of citizen journalists and discover ways to harness
their participation in the process. Only
when media companies learn how to collaborate with their audiences and users, will
they reap the benefits of the digital, on-demand, attention economy.
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Rupert Murdoch,
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