Steve Jobs said people don’t read any more. But Apple is in talks with several media companies rooted in print, negotiating content for a “new device.” And they’re not just going for e-books and mags. They’re aiming to redefine print.I’m looking forward to this. I think iTunes LP is the first application of Apple’s new publishing format. They have a history of doing this kind of thing — releasing something small that uses a new technology, then revealing what it was really developed for.
This is one of the real questions of innovation in media - who goes first, the platform or the content?
Media can’t start producing content on a mass scale for a device that doesn’t yet exist, especially when you take into account the state of media finances, and the amount of time it will take for such a platform to become standard.
Tech companies are in better shape, but a platform without content is a hard sell, even for a company like Apple that gets the benefit of the doubt from most of its customers.
The argument I expect is one based on the platform already existing through webmagazines. Which, though technically true, would require a media company to take a look at funding a webmag as something other than an addition to a print version, or a store of old content. Even my favourite web magazines are generally text and images served online, i.e., bastardized print. Something with interactive content, exclusive embedded video, innovative presentation of information? if you know where to look, you can find little hints of magic, but not as a standard element of magazines presented online.
Newspapers should not have comments
This amazing WSJ article that everyone’s talking about, A Manifesto for Slow Communications, has only three comments - all pretty lame ones. People are discussing it on their blogs, via Twitter, in real life. But the three comments sit there wrongly representing the success of the article, newspaper readers’ engagement, the WSJ’s “digital strategy,” and the importance of reader feedback.
If comments were turned off, journalists would be more likely to go to other blogs and Twitter and read the real conversation, infusing their follow up articles with fresh ideas and relevancy. That’s what I do with my blog.
Plus we all know newspaper commenters are completely psycho nutbags so no one would miss it. In fact turning the comments off would make reading a news site more pleasant for the rest of us.
The majority of comments re: newspaper articles that I read on blogs, or on twitter, are well thought out, often dissenting, and are open to the possibility that they’ve missed something.
The majority of comments re: newspaper articles that I read on newspaper websites fall somewhere between ignorant and offensive, normally about 1/5th treading close to being racist.
I would not miss comments, were they eliminated from the sites of every newspaper I read. Commentary that isn’t connected to an identity is rarely insightful, as people LIKE to claim insight, and generally cling to anonymity in the face of oppression, or to be a dick.
Too Slow To Sell.
We’re reaching the point where traditional media is too slow to function as a marketing / communications channel for some creative products.
The mechanics of new media, and new modes of distribution, don’t sync with old media production schedules. A notable portion of the entertainment value, and therefore monetary value, of old media products, is in their function as a mechanism of review and cultural arbitration.
But the production cycle for new creative products is rapidly outpacing the traditional production cycle of media.
This is already becoming a problem for Advertising and PR. Consumers know about products, and desire them, long before the legal release date. As such, business is lost to leaks, pirated versions, etc. Part of what forces the early release of information is the old media production cycle - everything needs to be planned far enough in advance that magazines, TV specials, media buys, and other reviews can be placed. The end result is an informed customer with unfulfilled desires.
Don’t be worried about people not wanting to buy newspapers, or magazines, or watch TV via traditional cable. Worry about when Advertising, PR, and Marketing realize old media is ruining their ability to satisfy customers, and plan a mass exodus for media with a shorter production cycle.
Working strictly through blogs, podcast, online advertising and traditional short lead publication, the idea of waiting six months to buy something you know you want seems archaic.
Consumers are already voting for speed, and near-instant gratification with their attention and their media purchases. Once the promotional engine follows them, and takes the sponsorship, content, and interest with them, the real trouble starts.
Culture is faster than old media, now. It’s just a matter of people getting comfortable enough with the idea to let the realities of the new attention cycle dictate where they try to build buzz.
