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Cut&Paste 2009 Digital Design Tournament

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Easy Listening: Radio and the Web

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The Rise and Rise of Word-of-Mouth Marketing

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• What Happens to Newspapers?

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Opinion: What Happens to Newspapers?

The University of Westminster's Geoffrey Davies responds to issues raised at the recent NMK panel event on the subject.

Every week I seem to get another email call for papers or an invitation to a meeting or conference on the future of the news media. From Athens to Luton to Oslo to Los Angeles fear is running through the industry. Last night in London, it was “What Happens to Newspapers?” and tomorrow is entitled “Is Digital the New Black” (and I don’t think they mean Conrad!).

As it happens, the Telegraph was well-represented at NMK’s event, along with Northcliffe Media, the NUJ, Retail Week and inevitably, The Guardian.

Justin Williams from the Telegraph was probably the most realistic person there - and possibly the most honest in many ways. Don’t put your daughter on the subs desk was his first piece of advice – because he won’t have a subs desk! But then he might not employ your daughter as he is “not certain we have people with radical ideas” though he admits ”younger people are on a different planet”.

Indeed, as I commented to chairman Nico Macdonald, the absence of young people was noticeable. The University of Westminster was offered – and took up - some free places for students, but perhaps there should have been some on the panel?

Williams’ point was that young people have the vision to tell stories in a different way. He said that too many people “still see things through the prism of newspapers”. He then talked about non-linear presentation, Digg and using links to tell the story better. But this has nothing to do with newspapers Justin!

Indeed, his estimate that 60% of the cost of newspapers was in production clearly suggests that the whole print process may be going the way of illuminated manuscripts.

There was a general consensus that what the industry needs is people who can use InDesign, work in Photoshop and Flash, edit in Final Cut and write code – oh, and recognise and write a decent story.

Most of this seems to have no relationship with printing words in ink on paper. Yes, we talked about folding plasma screens but the demographic of the room was that this was all rather modern and moveable type will never catch on.

I’ve interviewed literally hundreds of applicants for journalism and those that have done more than read the Metro on their way to Northwick Park tube are the exception. They get news and information elsewhere.

I sat in on a class today who after only four weeks were finding good stories, creating interesting pages in WordPress, using cameras and cutting video.

We know there is a fall off in newspaper sales and in the current economic climate it will accelerate. I doubt newspapers will cease to exist in the short to medium term anymore than vinyl has disappeared. Indeed, rising sales of the Economist and the slow attrition rate at the top end show there is still demand for the quality printed word.

But as an educator, I’ll teach InDesign along with Flash and Final Cut – but most of all, I’ll teach them to write.