Editorial opinions
I came to the conclusion long ago that not many people read a newspaper’s editorial opinion. I’m a newspaper junkie and I don’t read them.
I stopped writing editorials at the Alpine Times and the Kalgoorlie Miner, and the sky didn’t fall in. We never received a single complaint and nobody even commented on the omissions.
Editorials were important historically, back when newspapers were the only medium. They not only reported debate, they shaped opinion like they cannot possibly do today. Publishers established newspapers to exercise that privilege. Read more
No excuse for being beaten to a story
There’s no doubt the internet has enabled newspapers to compete with broadcast media when it comes to breaking news.
No longer are we helpless to hear a developing story on the radio while our pages carry stale text.
I had two examples of that today and in both cases the stories that appear in newsprint tomorrow will be out of date. That’s frustrating, but thanks to the web it’s redeemable. Read more
What will replace newspapers?
There’s a good opinion piece online about what will replace big city newspapers in the United States.
The writer, Jon Fine, says he’s not talking about national dailies or smaller local papers.
But city papers, he says, are losing advertising revenue at the rate of 15 percent a year. Read more
The wrap
Newspapers often have a “wrap around” known as the “wrap”. It’s generally a special feature related to a major event.
I’ve had discussions and arguments about wraps. In my view they are not worth running except in exceptional circumstances.
I won’t define those circumstances because they can’t easily be defined. Read more
Shoddy work shames the profession
The Age did nothing for the credibility of journalists and newspapers when it ran a false story on the front page yesterday claiming retired Essendon legend James Hird wanted to make a comeback next year.
Hird emphatically denied the rumor, as reported in the Herald Sun.
He also claimed on Melbourne radio that reporter Rohan Connolly had not even spoken to him regarding the story, which Vexnews claimed was published “on the express orders of (new) Editor-in-Chief Paul Ramadge”.
Connolly’s weak excuse for not calling Hird was that he writes for the Herald Sun.
They were reports which, in ordinary circumstances, would be run directly by the person in question. Except that, in this case, the subject of the reports happened to be a contributor to this newspaper’s major opposition.
Since when were commercial considerations a licence to forget ethics and standards?
No journalist or lover of newspapers can take any pleasure from this debacle. It’s shoddy work and embarrassing.
New Adelaide Advertiser masthead
The Adelaide Advertiser launched a new masthead earlier this month and it completely fails to grab me. Read more
Trouble getting your paper?
The Sunday Herald Sun includes some text on page two inviting readers to contact the newspaper if they have trouble buying a copy.
It appears under the headline “Trouble getting your paper”:
We’re keen to know if you are having trouble buying your copy of the Sunday Herald Sun and herald Sun. If your retail outlet sells out of the paper any day of the week, we’d like to hear from you …
There’s an obvious problem with this. If the reader wasn’t able to buy a copy they won’t see the notice.
That’s a little trite perhaps. If it appears every day it might be a call to action when the reader misses finding a Herald Sun, but I question the value of taking up space on page two with a negative message.
The importance of the front page
How important is the front page of a newspaper? It’s the entry point for most readers, so it’s very important. It’s also the hook on a shop shelf to attract an impulse buyer.
Publishing a newspaper isn’t rocket science; it’s common sense really. The influence of an editor is most noticeable in story selection and the emphasis given to particular stories.
While changes to the style and direction of a newspaper might affect sales in the longer term, casual buyers are won by word of mouth and a strong front page.
In my experience about 90 percent of newspaper buyers are regular, probably a bit more than that. A good front page or a special feature might swing five percent in extra sales. Read more
Different states of the nation
I read somewhere that Fairfax had been surprised at the viewing preferences of visitors to WA Today.
Readers of the start-up online news service in Perth have bucked the national trend and shown their serious side.
There has been a greater interest in business news and less in celebrity gossip.
The glimpse of today’s most-read stories backs that up (September 19). While Brisbane readers are obsessed by sex and the Broncos, Perth readers want to know what’s happening with Bank West and the Barnett Cabinet.
It’s not surprising really. The WA News and News Corp websites in Perth were long established before Fairfax came along. And Perth people are arguably more interested in making money than having sex.