Scotland’s oldest newspaper relaunched as first web-only daily
Posted on | January 26, 2010 | No Comments
While the newspaper industry continues to debate the pros and cons of paywalls, Stewart Kirkpatrick, former editor of scotsman.com, has launched the first ever web-only daily. Named after Scotland’s oldest newspaper, The Caledonian Mercury, caledonianmercury.com challenges the perception that the internet will spell the death of the newspaper. By offering high quality journalism, it hopes to attract readers and advertisers through the quality of its content.
There has been much debate about whether such a venture can succeed given the damage the internet has done to the industry. With sites like the BBC and Sky News continuing to offer free news will there be a place for niche news sites? I think the problem that the Caledonian Mercury is going to have is that it is competing against many other niche news sites that won’t have the same overheads – the Scottish publication is going to be paying journalists, including many former staff from the Scotsman.
There are also question marks over the professionalism of the design. Built in Wordpress, the site doesn’t exude the same professionalism as the majority of its competitors. Simplicity is always a good starting point, but the curious logo and tag clouds give it more the image of a blog. Perhaps this is what they had planned, but in the longterm it is a concern that they just come across as another blog.
It’s a great idea, but I’m worried that their approach may just prove that blogs will replace newspapers for well written and thoughtful commentary.
Retweeting made easy
Posted on | January 19, 2010 | No Comments
Ever wondered about retweeting? Are you new to Twitter and can’t decipher the strange codes people talk in.
Here is my three point guide to retweeting:
- An example of a retweet is:
RT @tashaharrison This is a great article http://bit.ly/45t783 - You can comment on a retweet like this:
RT @tashaharrison This is a great article http://bit.ly/45t783 <– the point he made is worth thinking about - You can also reference someone else’s tweet by writing at the end of the tweet:
This article is really interesting and worth thinking about http://bit.ly/45t783 (via @tashaharrison)
Retweeting is a great way of sharing information with the people you follow. It is generally how articles and news are able to travel so quickly to so many people on Twitter.
Social media is an opportunity for politicians to build trust
Posted on | January 11, 2010 | No Comments
As we draw closer to the general election we should be prepared to be bombarded by the usual political marketing/propaganda. After the excitement of the Obama campaign we shouldn’t be mistaken for thinking that Cameron or Brown may look at how to leverage social media. It will be interesting to see how this pans out. Both have used Youtube, perhaps not very successfully, and Brown does have a Twitter account, as does his wife Sarah.
Perhaps one of the best examples of a politician’s use of social media is Andrew Marshall, the Councillor for Swiss Cottage. He has a blog and Twitter account in which he posts updates about key issues affecting his constituents. This has recently been highlighted by his reaction to the bad weather, where he has asked people to update him on road reports and problems he may not be aware of. He is not trying to sell people a political ideal, he is simply using social media as a tool to improve his communications and make him a better councillor. Essentially, he is building trust.
How far have we come in the last ten years?
Posted on | January 5, 2010 | No Comments
This is how far:
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The Guardian leads the way with iPhone app
Posted on | December 15, 2009 | 1 Comment
Yesterday The Guardian released it’s new app for the iPhone. It costs £2.39, is highly personalised and allows you to listen to podcasts and browse images. The Guardian does have a very good mobile site, but I downloaded the app as I wanted to see whether it would be worth £2.39, which is quite a lot for an app. First impressions are that it makes browsing a lot easier and I can organise it into the sections I read the most. It is a definite improvement, but not completely life changing.
The Guardian are leading the way in monetising the news. I don’t have to download the app to read the paper, I could go on reading it from the web browser, but the app makes it a lot easier and the customisation is great. They have added value to their service and I am willing to pay. It’s a lot like upgrading your Spotify so you don’t receive adverts.
The Guardian recognise, more than any other British newspaper, the need to work with their readers to turn around their declining profits. Instead of rushing backwards to an old model of charging people to read the news (ie what Murdoch is proposing) they have accepted that information on the internet is free. The amount of content that is published everyday has reduced the value of news. Before the internet, everyone had to buy a paper or magazine to gather information and opinions. Now it’s free.
I’ve spoken before about the fact that this is a huge problem for newspapers. The Guardian have reacted by adding value to the experience of reading news on their website. They have subscription services, but they don’t charge for the basic news. They also don’t make a big song and dance of it (like Murdoch), they simply offer these services as a way to add value.
It is too soon to know which model will work, a paywall system, where you must subscribe to read beyond a certain point, or an added value service, where you pay for a better experience. I suspect that the latter will be the more successful.