Reasons for optimism #5: SembraMedia’s discoveries

200 digital native media on three continents provide models for sustainability Why write about “reasons for optimism” when so much is going wrong in our politics, economy, and environment? Optimism gives us confidence that we can make things better. As I like to say, it’s another day of opportunity. SembraMedia gives us another reason to […]

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Reasons for optimism #3: journalists around the world

Thousands of organizations are collaborating to produce public-service journalism Why write about “reasons for optimism” when so much is going wrong in our politics, economy, and environment? Optimism gives us confidence we can make things better. As I like to say, it’s another day of opportunity. Quality journalism takes time and is expensive. It requires […]

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salesperson

Build a loyal community, not a big audience

Focus on your users’ needs, their problems, their values, their tastes Any news media entrepreneur who is trying to create a sustainable business model should keep these three things in mind: Build a media community, not an audience Focus on relationships, not scale Measure engagement, not page views What follows is, first, my message during […]

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How to fight the power of fear and polarization

Journalists have the tools to get people engaged in solving local problems “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Those were the resolute words of the wheelchair-bound man who was taking office as president in 1933. He was elected in the depths of the Depression, with millions unemployed and the economy in […]

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In France, an investigative news startup beats the odds

Mediapart’s digital subscription model succeeded slowly, then spectacularly The French digital news startup Mediapart’s five founders—well known journalists from the venerable publications Le Monde and Libération— defied conventional wisdom of the time when they launched the investigative journalism site in 2008. The media industry graveyard was already littered with examples of failed subscription models for […]

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How publisher credibility creates economic value

Transparency is key to strengthening trust in media People tell each other stories all the time to make sense of the world. At the moment, various storytellers are competing for our attention. Their motives vary wildly: to surprise, distract, entertain, confuse, create envy, win votes, inspire hatred, make money, and, in some cases, to perform […]

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