Command of the obvious

When telling folks that we're starting a new-model local news company that's beta test is a head-to-head battle with Belo, I used to start the conversation with a self-deprecating remark about being "bark at the moon crazy." For variety, sometimes I'd mix it up?by introducing one of my partners as "Sancho Panza."

I noticed a few days ago that I'd let that affectation slip away. We don't need that anymore. We're certainly bold, undoubtedly ambitious, but not the least bit crazy. I can't have a conversation or read anything without tripping over a pile of?third-party validation.

The latest, and perhaps most direct, that I've seen is this speech made last week by Alan Nelson, Publisher of The Command Post.

You know the drill: highlights; emphasis mine; leave a message at the beep.

In fact, if there is one general rule for the new economy, it?s that information technology has transferred the power of economic exchange from the seller to the consumer ?

? in being able to find what they want, in their ability to negotiate on price, in their ability to demand just what they want, just how they want it.

And so if there?s something in our story that can inform the newsroom of the future, we need to see it as a story of economics and social change, rather than just a story of citizen reporters and open-source journalism.

That's been my revelation in the past week.

So the lesson from the law of the flow: Your ability to choose when and how something is reported, and the timeline over which you can hold information as you make that choice, are more compressed every day. Anyone can spill the beans, and with the web and email, everyone has access to the beans. The important question to ask about a piece of information ? and especially highly relevant information ? is no longer ?if,? it?s ?when.?...

So the lesson: if it?s going to satisfy consumers, the newsroom of the future MUST be incredibly fast. And here?s the problem: your editorial structures nearly prohibit you from ever becoming as fast as the bloggers ? every gatekeeper along the way slows the flow.

In other words, post it as it happens.

And there?s a third lesson: It?s that while the network kills brokers, it LOVES editors.

Mavens are editors ? the people around them trust them to cull the information that?s out there and surface what?s worth attending to. I don?t bother to try every new restaurant in town ? I rely on my local food maven to try them for me.

I think that in the newsroom of the future the role of the editor will change ? from someone who works primarily as a gatekeeper of the facts with an interest in quality, to someone who ?serves? the reader as a consumer based on an understanding of what readers will consider relevant ?

? and on an understanding that readers will judge the veracity of the content based on comparisons to a much larger and transparent flow of information and ideas.

Amen.

So where is the value for the newsroom of the future?

It might be in doing little to no national or international coverage ? coverage that?s highly commoditized and democratized ? and instead offering a deep, detailed level of local coverage that?s unrivaled and that readers value highly.

Or it might be that the writing in the newspaper of the future looks more like news magazine writing ? a level of detail and analysis that the wire services don?t provide.

Or it might be that ? like stock brokers ? you become more of a consultant, and less of an information broker ? offering not just news to your readers but expertise and counsel in how to deal with that news.

Regardless, you?re absolutely going to have to find a new way to add new value. And while I?m not a technologist ? nor a journalist, although I play one on TV ? I think the Command Post is a signpost along the way. People read our site because for them, it adds unique value ?

? it respects the law of the flow, acting as a clearinghouse for global sources of information that allows readers to ?triangulate? a story and resolve the ?truth? for themselves ?

? it respects the law of the fast, providing information in real time, both through our contributors and those who comment ?

? it respects the law of the few, engaging mavens as contributors and feeding the desire of maven readers with well-selected and relevant content ?

? and it respects the law of the many, both in our large network of contributors, and by allowing our readers to not just read the stories, but to participate in them, discuss them, fact-check them, and inform them.

The balance of power has changed ? the consumer is now the one in charge. He?s increasingly demanding unique and increased value, and however he likes it ? cars, banks, or news ? thanks to information technology, is how he expects to get it.

And it?s an expectation he increasingly has the power to meet. If papers like the Herald-Journal are to remain relevant, it?s an expectation their newsroom of the future will have to satisfy ? or they?ll risk losing that consumer forever.

I'm literally verklempt. This is beautiful. If we're barking at the moon, it's a moon that a lot of other folks can see.

Comments

[A visitor]

Thanks for the kind words! Next time I'm in DFW, maybe we can swap stories over a beer ...

Alan [alan@command-post.org]