By Paula Tuerk
 Martin Turner makes a point at last week’s Morning Forum. |
Will daily and weekly newspapers soon cease to appear on our driveways and in our mailboxes? Martin Turner, Washington, D.C., bureau chief for the BBC, thinks the answer is yes, and he offered his reasoning May 2 at the Morning Forum of Los Altos.
Turner is spending 2006 at Stanford University as a fellow in the John S. Knight Fellowships for Professional Journalists.
Turner said the news media is facing its greatest crisis for three main reasons. First, an outdated business model relies on a significant stream of advertising revenue. Second, the audience questions the credibility of the news it receives. And third, there has been a change in the way today’s audience wants its news delivered.
Turner contrasted the 50 percent profit margin news organizations traditionally expect with today’s profit reality, which ranges from 16 to 20 percent. Newspaper circulation is down 3 percent, and major newspapers such as the New York Times and the Washington Post have been forced to cut 1,500 positions from their newsrooms to try to meet the profit expectations.
The profession’s credibility is sagging, he said. A recent survey in Britain concluded that audiences think journalists tell the truth only 16 percent of the time, while politicians’ scorecards came in at 20 percent, Turner said. In Britain, the tabloid press is a popular addiction, even though readers know it can be “a primordial swamp of deceit,” he said.
Turner said he thinks the incisiveness of reporting is quite different in Britain, where journalists continually thrust questions at newsmakers until an answer is received. Even British Prime Minister Tony Blair is required to answer weekly questions in Parliament.
In contrast, according to Turner, there is a cozy relationship between news gatherers and newsmakers in the United States. White House press conferences result in bland answers to questions, and access to senior officials is curtailed if the administration perceives that journalists are too pushy about repeating questions or demanding answers. For example, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld told his aides never to schedule another interview with the BBC because of its reporters’ difficult line of questioning.
Even more crucial, said Turner, is the fact that the traditional media behave as if the Web weren’t wildly popular and pervasive. More people access the Web for news than ever before, and using today’s software they can tailor the news they receive to their particular interests. Using bits of TV news, users can create their own broadcasts or contribute eyewitness video to traditional media.
Mainstream news organizations are not taking advantage of the interactivity and community-building opportunities the Web affords, Turner said. Static online front pages don’t allow for dynamic displays or fast updates. Third parties are stepping in to make money by delivering content and advertising that tracks and understands user interests.
Turner said he thinks that only National Public Radio has fully embraced the Internet, creating relationships with audiences using techniques such as streaming media. Although he doesn’t agree with one projection that the last newspaper will be published in April 2040, he predicts major change for the news as we know it.
Morning Forum is a members-only lecture series held at Los Altos United Methodist Church. To get on a waiting list for membership, write to: Morning Forum, P.O. Box 274, Los Altos 94023-0274.
