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CNN.com
Bill Gates: Newspaper Nostradamus? |
Jonathan Weber, a former reporter for the Los Angeles Times, makes several interesting points about "the era of unbundling" for newspapers in an Oct. 3 article for
The Times (of London).
He says Bill Gates put his finger on the problems facing newspapers when, in the early 1990s, he met with the editorial board of the L.A. Times. "In a comment that has always stuck with me, Gates observed that newspapers delivered a bundle of things -- national, international and local news; brand advertising; classified advertising; event listings -- that didn't logically belong together as a bundle."
Weber also takes a very brief look at the concept of local ownership vs. corporate ownership of newspapers, in the context of reports that movie mogul David Geffen would like to buy the LA Times: "I'd wager that a Geffen-owned Times would quickly have journalists pining for the days when they were at least working for people who knew something about newspapers and didn't have personal agendas."
Peter I know this is only peripheral to your item...
