Poynter Online
Go


Top Story

Young Journalists Use Facebook Ads to Reach Prospective Employers
Most Recent Articles
1.X-Ray Reading Helps Interpret Author's Intentions
12:05 AM Feb. 10, 2010
2.USDA Drops National Animal ID Plan
12:01 AM Feb. 10, 2010
3.Live Chat Today: What Position Should I Apply for When Company Has Multiple Openings?
12:01 AM Feb. 10, 2010
4.AP stories are back on Google News again
7:21 PM Feb. 9, 2010
5.Foursquare partners with New York Times for Olympics
4:39 PM Feb. 9, 2010
Most E-mailed
Recent Comments
Recent Tags
Community Activity

Poynter Training
Poynter Seminars
Small, in-person training experiences.
1.NewsU: Picture Editing 101: Essentials and Ethics
Apply NOW
2.Poynter Fellowship for College Journalists
Apply by March 1
3.Making Your Opinion Matter
Apply by March 22

News University
Today's most popular courses on NewsU, Poynter's e-learning site for journalists.
Webinars
Our online classroom is just a click away. Learn more.
All Webinars

Poynter Forums

View Forum Post

Topic: Memos Sent to Romenesko
Date/Time: 7/14/2008 11:19:24 AM
Title: Lee Abrams' July 14 blog post
Posted By: Jim Romenesko
 
Lee's BlogJuly 14, 2008

THINK PIECE: TV PROGRESS AND ANOTHER LIST OF 14 THINGS FOR NEWSPAPERS TO GROW AND PROSPER IN 2008 AND BEYOND

On the TV side there are some amazing things happening. WGN-AMERICA is reaching Million+ viewer ratings on many of their shows. Tip of the iceberg stuff. The re-imaging, show packaging and other competitive elements are starting to pay...big. AND--San Diego is launching it's new News approach and re-launch August First. Keep your eye on this one--they're thrown away the rule book!! You will hear A LOT about this...and it will help re-invent TV in a positive and impactful
way...fast.

On the newspaper front, it's come to my attention that many have looked at the Orlando Sentinel and thought "Looks good...but kinda loud...not sure it'll work here". You're right. It's an ORLANDO paper (home of Disney World, water parks and strip malls). What is great about Orlando is that they aggressively made the moves to re-invent themselves. On ORLANDO terms. Every paper that re-invents needs to do so in sync with their city vibe. It's the attitude, spirit and competitive intelligence, actions, excitement and urgency that are universal. Read on....


Some of these following observations fall under "duh", I think newspapers need to execute them:

MORE consistently
MORE noticeably

...and also go through the exercise of "re-thinking" these areas of
varying importance.

CONCERT AND EVENT REVIEWS? If you want to see a movie or check out a restaurant, we have reviews. Helpful tools for a decision as the movie and restaurant will be around for awhile... But with concerts, it's
usually a one day affair and we look BACKWARDS. That's fine, but the
emphasis needs to be on PREview. Giving readers tools to decide if they
should see the show. A review is after the fact...and I'm not sure if
anyone really cares besides those hoping it'll drive their sales. We can
be THE concert source by providing information BEFORE the show...to,
like a movie, help people decide if they should go. This will make your
music reporting MORE relevant and usable. All people usually get is
what's in the ad, or cursory information and after the fact reviews. We
have the opportunity to dive into the show and what to expect. A tool
for a go/no go decision. /CONTINUED

View Complete Forum Topic

Username
Password
New User? Signup Now
Poynter Careers
See All Jobs
Add Your Resume
Post Your Job
Become a Member
More media jobs