I know it’s been a long time since I’ve posted but I’m still here. I don’t really have much of an excuse except that I’ve been busy and I’m lazy…. anyway, this article in USA Today broke me out of my natural state of inertia.
It quotes the AP’s chairman of the board as saying newspapers should explore outsourcing in every aspect of their business – even editorial jobs like copyediting. Reuters started this discussion a while back when they outsourced some basic writing jobs to India, like data-driven earnings roundups.
The article talks about pasadenanow.com, a website that uses overseas contributors to cover city council meetings using webcasts.
“We used to have on-the-ground reporters, but the expense was prohibitive," said James Macpherson, editor and publisher of the site. "Regretfully, we had to lay them all off."
Macpherson said he saw no reason a larger publication couldn't adopt similar techniques to save costs.
"You might miss the nuance of a sneer on a councilman's face but you know how he voted and what he said," he said. "That's factual and can be reported on from anywhere."
Um, yeah… I’m not so sure this is the solution for what ails the newspaper industry. It’s a band-aid on a gaping wound. Clearly, outsourcing has a place but you need someone on the ground who understands the culture or the content is going to suck. I think it is important to see the sneer on the councilman’s face. That kind of drama is about the only interesting thing that happens in a city council meeting. (Fixing the local sewer system is boring… when people start sniping at each other then you get some compelling personality stuff.)
Some media outlets are taking a different approach by going hyperlocal and relying more on user-generated content. Hyperlocals are sites that drill deep into specific communities, more targeted than the metro sections of newspapers. The Washington Post is testing the waters with this for Loudon County, a suburb of D.C., although their site looks a little swanky and relies on the existing newsroom for content and support. The WSJ had an article a while back that said Loudon Extra was largely a flop, although it seems a little early in the game to pass judgement.
I think if hyperlocals can run lean enough then they might eventually become a significant driver of ad revenue. To get lean, some are recruiting citizen journalists who get paid via commission based on the ad revenue they generate. OurTown.com claims that local editors can make up to $40-60K a year covering two zip codes, which is pretty solid compared to a community newspaper reporting gig. There’s an interview over at Online Journalism Review with the chief news officer of OurTown.
Most of the successful blogs out there are using the basic hyperlocal premise but it’s about a community of interest rather than a specific location. At the most fundamental level all media is predicated on building readership around community. The traditional dailies better figure out how to monetize their online communities before it’s too late. Outsourcing won’t solve that problem.
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