OBrien et al Public Relations
Wednesday, October 06, 2010
USAToday Points to the Newspapers of Tomorrow
For those of us in the PR business, this story pretty much sums up where the news media world is headed.
USA Today's overhaul cuts 35 newsroom positions
The AP describes the carnage at the paper saying that USAT is de-emphasizing "... its print edition and feeds more content to mobile devices."
But it's the sixth paragraph that really speaks volumes:
"With the print edition selling fewer copies and lessWell there it is. If you think PR had a hard time getting credit for what it does and putting a value on what it's worth, as the Bard said, "You ain't seen nothin' yet."
advertising, USA Today is reshuffling its editors, reporters and
photographers so they will be in a better position to produce information
more quickly and develop story packages more likely to appeal to the growing
number of people who are getting their news through mobile phones and sleek
computer tablets ..." -- AP/Michael Liedtke, 10/6/10
If PR pros can no longer equate a story's column inches to an equivalent sized advertisement, then what should a news placement be worth (especially when that clip is a digital image on a 2 by 3 inch screen)?
Should an electronic placement be equivalent to one found in a fixed media (newspaper, magazine, website) or even a broadcast hit (TV or Radio news, blogs)?
When newspapers go the way of the Dinosaurs, we (PR pros) will know where the eyeballs will be. Don't know about your practice, but if our clients can't grasp the value of PR-produced news coverage is NOW, what's it going to be like in the future?
Will it be: "Congratulations. Your video news release has generated 1,375 viewings on YouTube. Now pay me."
To be continued....
- posted by MediaObserver @ 8:05 AM 0 comments
