Convergence in the Newsoom

“Convergence brings together the depth of

newspapers coverage, the immediacy of television and the

interactivity of the Web”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibJaqXVaOaI&feature=related (Henry Jenkins- MIT)

Converge1. To tend or move

toward one point: come together

2. To come together and united in a common interest of focus

3. To approach a limit as the number of terms increases without limit Not a synonym for media

consolidation

Convergence CultureGeneration of ImmediacyContent is atomisedNiche markets with highly focused purposes“Readers have large appetite but a short

attention span” SupersaturatedBlurring of the audience/content producer distinction resulting in the changing of labour divisions.

New MediaNew Media is changing and re-engineering

journalism resulting in increased intertextual content.“ [This] has led to a double fragmentation: first, for newsmakers, whose daily work has been interrupted and rearranged by additional responsibilities and news pressures of time and space: second, for news audiences, whom marketers have segmented into narrow units and who are encouraged to forge symbolic or imagined communities on the basis of marketing concerns”

Where are we now?Old models of journalism have been irreversibly “disrupted” and

the new models are different on a fundamental level. Mainstream news organisations began loosing their audiences

before the internet reached mass audiences.“Legacy” media now has to compete with faster, more efficient

vehicles of mass media.The Sky- the known unknownSlow to recognise/ paralysed by

impact Consumers have benefitted: choice,

speed, delivery, platform options etc. Adapt or die? Not just a matter of

riding out the stormCrisis of legitimacy

Changing of news habits Challenging the comfort zones of journalistsNo lone wolf journalism- telling a story

through a variety of mediumsMusical chairs-no one can affordto sit this one outNo one area ofspeciality

From scarcity to plentyInformation abundanceLoss of limits – infinite competition Have to think about your audience- ‘customer

is always right’Should read what they want

or what they need to read?Has journalism moved from

being a 4th Estate?“virgin territory”

Change in the way news is “reported, aggregated, distributed and shared”

Can a picture tell a thousand words?Cannot simply transfer a story from print to

online to television to radio- mediums have different expectations

Have to think about which medium will tell the story best

Have to think how each one will compliment the other and how the overall story will be packaged

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNic4wf8AYg

ProsumersUser-generated contentAs people use a site, so it’s value goes up – Readers now

accredit and contributeHuffington Post – 4 million comments a month; more on technology than content? “turning your customers into publishers”Focus group all day longJournalistic sweat shop – interns, UGC etc. How to develop sources and audiences

AdvertisingShift in power from media houses to advertisers Track exact demographics and target themLoss of “pass-along” audience“We’ve lost the power of the package” – Michael Golden

– NYT Co. “The definition of a competitor now is someone who

gives your story away for free” – and makes Ad money

Decrease in media credibility- Health Care Ad

Los Angeles Times- advertisers play a key role in shaping journalistic content

Negative effects of convergence on the newsroom

Slow reaction to change Inter-group bias : one staff-shaped collision at a timeStress- newroom cyclone Decreased creativity - time in the field Lazy SAPA/ PR journalism – churnalism!Redundancies to come?Immediacy: from idea to market- mediocre journalism“Scooping” each other – rather do the work + credit!Multi-skilling – more time, less moneyClashing of newsroom cultures + 2 bosses?Loss of investigative journalism – or hierarchical issues“visual information at the expense of textual dept”

Positive effects of convergence on the newsroom

Increased bonding/ collegiality : “Proximity breeds collegiality, not contempt”

CV “booster” – increased moraleMulti-skilling – presentation and opportunity

“learning the language” Breaking of the “self-defining and self-

limiting” bubbleResource sharing – ideas, people etc. Decrease in internal competition

A Good Example- Daily DispatchIntegrated newsroom – no officesCombined online and print meetings: which

story will suit which medium, which should be reserved for print

Open-flow of communicationInvestment in investigative stories

and technology Good cross-use of media Dying to live project

A Work in Progress- M&G• Separate newsrooms : more than a physical wall• Duplication of stories due to lack of communication – inhibits cross-media projects•No formal policy• Weekly paper- daily online?

Where to from here?Divergence? Platform specific -platform agnostic?Monetising new mediaWho regulates?SynergyMobilising the journalistic imageGive public what they want or need?http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=6ILQrUrEWe8

ReferencesBloom, K & Mavhungu, J. 2009. “Successful ‘New Media’ Business

models: Case studies of independent commercial print media in South Africa.

Dupagne, M & Garrison, B. 2006. “The Meaning and Influence of Convergence” Journalism Studies. 7:2.

Grueksin, B., Seave, A., and Graves, L. 2011. “The Story So Far” Tow Centre for Digital Journalism.

Klinenberg, E. 2005. “Convergence: News Production in a Digital Age. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 597:48.

Singer, J.B. 2004. “Strange Bedfellows? The diffusion of convergence in four news organisations” Journalism Studies. 5: 1.

Van Noort, E. 2007. “Newsroom Convergence at the Mail & Guardian: A qualitative case study”, Honours Thesis.