'Experiment' may transform traditional news media

Not everyone can own a newspaper, but more and more people own a Kindle or other e-reading device. So what if the Kindle maker owns one of the world’s most illustrious dailies? It’s happening now, and initial alarm has turned into guarded optimism. If “print is dying”, as people have been saying for years now, why not let a tech mogul try to give it a digital resucsitation? 

With doom and gloom hanging over the print media, the change at the helm of The Washington Post might produce light at the end of the tunnel. Amazon owner Jeff Bezos has bought the prestigious newspaper “for himself”, not his company, he says, but surely he will utilise the tools at his disposal to reverse the fortunes of the money-losing daily. It must also be noted that legal and/or financial technicality and sensitivity are rumoured to be the motivations behind the “personal purchase”.

The Washington Post has a circulation that turns other newspapers green with envy, but not even that can save it from the “perfect storm” that threatens the print media. Advertising money has been in decline. Many people, particularly the younger generations, have stopped buying newspapers in favour of getting their news online. News-gathering costs remain high, while newspapers’ main competitor, the social media, are providing fast, virtually cost-free content, and their problem with accuracy is becoming less and less of an issue.

Kindle and other computer tablets have provided an alternative platform for the print media. But publishers sharing profits as well as competition among computer-tablet makers have slowed the evolution. With the maker of a popular e-reading device now owning a newspaper, the usual barriers can perhaps be lowered. And if the barriers can be lowered for the Post, they can be lowered for other newspapers, too.

Some say print journalism cannot migrate to the digital world because consumers are not ready for it. The truth is that consumers can have their say as long as the powers-that-be allow it. Did TV screens stop being square because consumers balked at the shape? It’s the same with newspapers. They have remained in print not because of consumers, but because of publishers’ understandable need to maintain the status quo.

Bezos will look at printing machines, news print and delivery convoys from a totally new angle. And it’s not just modern technology he is armed with. Amazon’s virtual delivery system might also help the Post and provide a win-win formula where selling and delivering other Amazon products are concerned.

There is concern about ethical integrity. In this respect there are a few scenarios to consider. The Post might have shown integrity under its former owner. It might continue to do so under the new owner. It might have to sacrifice a little, or a lot, of integrity, but it will live on under the new owner. What will happen remains to be seen.

With several print owners at their wits’ end and struggling to maintain a semblance of integrity in keeping their businesses alive, The Washington Post’s venture into unfamiliar territory will be watched closely. Its success or failure will say a lot about the future of the entire print industry.