“Online” Items

The ONA Digital Credibility Report

This is a PDF of the Online News Association study on digital credibility, co-authored by Howard Finberg and Martha Stone with assistance from Diane Lynch. Here’s what the goals of the project were:

ONA’s Web Credibility Study, for which it was awarded $225,000 from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation (www.knightfdn.org), is studying the impact of technology and the Internet on the gathering and dissemination of news.
The study will work to develop and promote principles and guidelines for online journalism focusing on proper relationships between editorial content, advertising and e-commerce; the development of ethical standards and avoidance of conflicts of interest; and appropriate use of hyperlinking in a journalistic environment.

Finding the Focus for Online Services

As part of the development process for AzCentral, the Phoenix Newspapers Inc. “skunk works” team undertook a couple of difficult, but important tasks.  One task was to better understand our potential audience.  With focus groups and other marketing research, we found some themes from our affinity groups:

  • The Travelers
  • Small business owners
  • Parents of young children
  • High school teachers

I really liked the idea that we wouldn’t talk only to “computer owners.” Rather we wanted to better understand how to serve the needs of our potential audience. Here’s what we wrote [I think by Dave Gianelli] about the process:

The four groups — people who like to travel, parents of young children, small­ business owners and high-school teachers – were selected after consulting with Ellen Jacobs, who guided the team throughout the process. We decided against creating focus groups out of demographics such as “computer owners” or “users of online services,” which are based more on the medium than content.

This strategy allowed the team to learn about the specific information needs of each group, and it pointed up some themes common across the groups. Also, the focus group members were varied in computer expertise: some used online services regularly, and others were thinking of joining one. Some said that they didn’t own a computer and that they didn’t plan to buy one.

We talked with the groups about how they get information (for planning a trip or a family outing, for example) and the frustrations they have in getting this information. What we found out can be used to help PNI shape its online services.

What is most interesting about this document is the VERY detailed inventory of the content that could be offered from existing material created by two newspapers, a business journal and an audiotext service.

From A (stock listings) to Zing!, our readers have access to news, sports, enter­tainment, computers, calendars, business and anything that fits under those umbrellas. And from The Arizona Republic, The Phoenix Gazette, Community and the Arizona Business Gazette comes access to other valuable reader services: PressLine, faxes and special sections.

As we wrote: It is a lot.  About 100 pages of inventory.  It is a great snapshot of the content that one newspaper in 1995 produced for its readers.

 

The Newspaper Industry’s Inflection Point

At Editor & Publisher’s 13th annual Interactive Conference and Trade Show in San Jose I gave a presentation titled “Digital Deliverance: Impact on the Newspaper Industry.”

One of the sections that rang true in 2002 and still relevant was about disruption:

With disruptive technologies, a company needs to throw off its existing culture and methods of doing business. While current customers are important, a disruptive technology demands that a company make sure these customers do not drive the company’s future direction. In other words, it means making sure old relationships — and their current economic value — do not drive business decisions needed for the future.

I argued that the newspaper industry was at “an inflection point.”  I think we have long past that point and the industry needs to quickly find ways to reinvent its business model.

What I liked about this presentation was the review of disruptive devices:

  • The Internet / Broadband
  • Information devices  / Wired and Wireless
  • Reading devices
  • Other digital devices  / Audio, Video, Gateways
(Remember, this is 2002.)

Dual Online Strategy Memo

You need to have a memo about the plan, even though there are lots of conversations along the way.  Here’s the memo I wrote John Oppedahl (my boss), editor of The Arizona Republic.  It outlined our strategy to launch on both AOL and on the Web.  And we also had a bulletin board service for home sales.

June 2, 1995

TO:                     John Oppedahl

FROM:               Howard I. Finberg

SUBJECT:         Executive Summary/Online Plan

This is an executive summary of Phoenix Newspapers’ Online Plan:

As outlined in the “Online Opportunities” report, PNI will take a multi-platform (or multi-newsstand approach).  This will allow PNI to control where content is placed and will provide opportunities to reach readers through different services (America Online, the Internet/World Wide Web server and PNI’s existing bulletin board service). PNI will not sign an “exclusive agreement” with any online service, and hence will be free to take advantage of upcoming opportunities in 1996 and 1997 (e.g. Microsoft Network and New Century Network).

The full memo has more details about staffing and revenue expectations.  The revenue was optimistic, but realistic given the AOL bounties.

Arizona Central’s Official Launch Announcements

Even though Arizona Central (AzCentral) was live on both AOL and the Web earlier, we needed to make an official and public announcement about both services.  The Phoenix Newspapers (PNI) marketing department created an excellent package of materials, including press releases (one for each service) and screenshots of the online services.  And, of course, a FAQ about going online.  It reads quaint today, but the basic “here’s how to get online” information was essential in 1995.  The other members of the launch team were Dave Gianelli, special projects manager, Dan Hontz, online project for AzCentral on the Web, and Jeff Unger, online producer for AzCentral on AOL.

Both press releases are here: pni_annouces azcentral_12_08_1995

The FAQ about Arizona Central on AOL and on the Web are here: azcentral faq sheets_12_08_1995