What's Next for Newspapers?

The future for print newspapers is not looking good as the recent demise of the Rocky Mountain News reminds us. While no one wants journalism to disappear, it is clear that ink squirted on wood pulp has run its course and we need to look at viable alternatives. The problem is, the obvious alternatives are not looking very viable. Sure, we can report and publish the news online--but so far subscription and advertising revenue streams have been unable to support these efforts.

So what are the options. Here are a few ideas that I've heard recently. 1) Switch from commercial to non-profit and ask wealthy patrons to endow the organization to cover operating expenses. Universities use this model and many believe that there are well-to-do benefactors who would hate to see newspapers disappear. 2) Increase subscription prices and sell papers/newsletters to those who value news and can afford to pay a premium price. 3) Charge a small fee per news story (similar to an iTunes model) for content. Even music fans are starting to "pony up" even though free downloads are often just a few clicks away. 4) Allow readers to "contribute" a small fee to websites where they find content of value. This approach is being promoted by companies like Kachingle, a micro-payment service that hopes that people will voluntarily give if given the opportunity. 5) Get in line for a government bailout. Some would argue that newspaper are too important to let them fail.

It's clear that some of these alternatives have more promise than others. It's also likely that the final solution may be some combination of the above, or something else entirely. There are some journalists whose jobs depend on figuring it out, and the sooner the better. To find out what they're up to, check out the I Want My Rocky website, or the San Franciso Post Chronicle wiki. At the Rocky website journalists who are out of work are continuing to publish stories as they try to figure out their future. At the SFC wiki, journalists who may soon be out of a job are trying to be proactive as they face the future. In both cases there is much at stake and little time to waste.