Business

What will a newspaper outlier of the future look like?

Is this how you now read your newspaper?
Is this how you now read your newspaper? Is this how you now read your newspaper?

In statistics, an outlier is a result within a sample which differs significantly from the rest of the sample. Think of George Best as an outlier, with the sample being the general population of Irish footballers. Or Rory McIlroy and Northern Ireland’s legions of golfers. An outlier is something or someone which bucks the general trend and stands out from the crowd.

If you’re reading this article on a page with printed ink, you’ve the outlier Johnannes Gutenberg, inventor of the printing press, to thank. If you’re reading it on a screen, then that’s because of internet pioneer Sir Tim Berners-Lee, along with Steve Jobs or Bill Gates.

This newspaper is an outlier of sorts, while circulation figures of regional newspapers across the UK and Ireland dwindle, the Irish News has largely held its own, recording minimal decline, outselling its main rivals and last month unveiling a brand new website.

Of all industries, travel and media have felt the force of the internet revolution hardest. The small local travel agency has disappeared, along with the town record shop. Television, first fragmented from single digit to hundreds of channels, now struggles to compete for younger viewers against online streaming services.

While Ireland still retains its full offer of daily morning newspapers, local and evening newspapers struggle and many have closed. Their competition is instant news, from social media to global news sources, many of which are free to use.

If the sample population of newspapers is in decline, then what will a newspaper outlier of the future look like?

Speaking in 1972, Chinese premier Zhou Enlai quipped that it was too early to say what the impact of the French Revolution was. In many way, it’s still to early to decipher the full impact of the internet on traditional news sources including newspapers, but there are some things we can be sure of.

For newspapers, whose traditional revenue comes from print advertising and cover price, revenue from digital advertising won’t replace declining revenue in both these areas. Outliers in this area have already grasped that the value of their brand and their product goes beyond reporting the news.

Think of New York, and the New York Times comes to mind. Think of Ulster GAA and the Irish News should pop into your head. Think of UK politics and you’ll think of Private Eye.

For a publication with this advantage, the next step is to build multiple revenue streams. The traditional barrier between journalism and commercial will becomes something of the past. Digital-only publications across the US are already embracing the concept of ‘native content.’

This isn’t boring and generally unreadable advertorial, but is content which, while it may be paid for by a client or organisation, doesn’t come under their direct commercial control, but is instead written by journalists who are employed by the publication.

Traditionalists may baulk at any dissolution of the divide between reporters and salespeople, but in Ireland, the UK and especially in the US, it is already happening and with impressive results in certain instances.

New types of content, especially around streamable video and sound, will also become more important. It’s unlikely that readers a decade from now will wait until Monday to read a report about a Sunday sports game, but they’ll certainly watch and listen to a streamed game via a newspaper’s website. They’ll also read expert analysis alongside or after the game.

Where did I first see Galway hurler Joe Canning’s amazing goal against Kilkenny in this year’s Leinster final? Not on the Sunday Game, not on RTÉ’ s match day coverage or in any major newspaper, but on Vine, a social media outlet which allows you to upload six-second video clips. To flourish, titles must operate across all media outlets.

Digital publishing has also seen a rebirth of long-form journalism, what’s now known in some publications as the ‘long-read’. Print costs and a perception that too long meant too boring means you’d struggle to find an article longer than 1000 words in most newspapers and many magazines.

There is no space limit on digital sites, so for those who want it, long articles, which can usually take an investigative angle, are a massive opportunity for quality journalism. They’re also hugely attractive to advertisers, who want engaged readers who keep coming back to a story, not fleeting visits of minimal commercial value.

For those sites who charge subscription - the Irish News and the Irish Times are two such examples - the challenge in the short term is significant. Why would someone pay for news when you can access it free elsewhere with a quick internet search?

By seeing a subscription as a membership, these outlets can build strong member communities and incredible brand loyalty. Add events for these members into the mix, discounts from partners, joint print and digital subscriptions, and, once again, the possibilities are huge.

The news outliers of the futures will be those who understand that readership is more important than circulation, that advertising and cover price are only two of many revenue sources, and that the brand of a news outlet is more than just about reporting the news.

Free press is a vital pillar of democracy and society but it can only flourish when it can be paid for. That’s why it’s critical that outliers in the news industry emerge and flourish in the internet era.

  •  Carl Whye (carl.whyte@mwadvocate.com) is a partner at MW Advocate. Follow him on @carldevlinwhyte