BACKGROUND FOR EDUCATORS

The Who Needs Newspapers (WNN) website has been compiled to inform users about the status of local U.S. newspapers and the values and practices of the newspaper industry by providing fresh information about current practices compiled from operating newspaper organizations across all 50 states.

Listening to a cross-section of WNN newspaper interviews and reading the newspaper summary reports provides an opportunity to:

  1. understand the key issues affecting the newspaper industry at this time,
  2. evaluate industry participants’ understanding of these issues and
  3. assess the depth of knowledge and motives of key leaders in the newspaper industry.

INSTRUCTIONAL USE

The materials on this site have been assembled for use by academics, high school and college-level students and other parties interested in learning about this field. Everything on the WNN website may be used – as needed – for educational purposes. WNN would appreciate any feedback about you can furnish about the use of these materials in the classroom.

WNN INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES

Here is a directory of the instructional materials assembled in the WNN Website.

  1. WNN Interview Sources & Topics (In-depth, online QuickTime video interviews)
    1. Publishers (& some owner/publishers)
      1. Introduction and Contribution
        1. Publishers discuss what their newspapers contribute to their community.
        2. Publishers discuss what might be the effects on their community, if it were to lose its newspaper.
      2. Strategic Changes
        1. Publishers list the key strategic operating changes at their newspapers in recent years as the news marketplace has entered the digital era and gross newspaper advertising revenues have declined.
        2. Publishers cite the most successful changes.
        3. Publishers cite the least successful changes.
      3. Adaptation & the Future
        1. Publishers evaluate their newspapers’ adaptation to change.
        2. Publishers explain the changes they expect at their newspapers in the next 3-5 years.
        3. Publishers discuss the impact of digital news delivery on their newspapers.
        4. Publishers evaluate their success, to date, earning revenue from digital news products
      4. Special sections (varies by newspaper)
        1. Publishers address a variety of issues: digital revenues, selling digital advertising, and monetizing digital products
      5. Prospects & Preparation
        1. Publishers evaluate the prospects for newspaper jobs at their newspapers and elsewhere, and they cite the qualifications needed to be competitive for hiring.
    2. Editors (executive & managing)
      1. Introduction and Contribution
        1. Editors explain what inspired them to become journalists.
        2. Editors discuss what their newspapers contribute to their community.
        3. Editors discuss what might be the effects on their community, if it were to lose its newspaper.
      2. Ethics & Content
        1. Editors explain whether their newspapers have a written code of ethics and explain how they manage ethical issues.
        2. Editors discuss managing ethical issues in their online editions.
        3. Editors discuss how their newspaper manages anonymous reader comments on their websites
      3. Strategic Changes
        1. Editors list the key operating changes in their newsrooms in recent years as the news marketplace has entered the digital era and gross newspaper advertising revenues have declined.
        2. Editors cite the most successful changes.
        3. Editors cite the least successful changes.
      4. Adaptation & the Future
        1. Editors evaluate their newspaper’s adaptation to change.
        2. Editors describe what it is like to be a newspaper reporter in this era.
        3. Editors explain the changes they expect at their newspapers in the next 3-5 years.
      5. Prospects & Preparation
        1. Editors evaluate the prospects for newspaper jobs at their newspapers and elsewhere, and they cite the qualifications student journalists need to be competitive for hiring.
    3. Online news managers (or online sales managers)
      1. Introduction and Contribution
        1. Online managers explain what inspired them to enter the newspaper business (most are journalists, but others come from diverse backgrounds).
        2. Online managers describe how they acquired the skills that prepared them for their jobs.
        3. Online managers discuss what their newspaper contributes to their community.
        4. Online managers discuss what might be the effects on a community losing its newspaper.
      2. Skills
        1. Online managers explain what skills are necessary for their current positions.
        2. Online managers predict what skills will be needed for the jobs in the next 3-5 years.
      3. Adaptation & the Future
        1. Online managers evaluate their newspaper’s adaptation to change.
        2. Online managers predict how their newspapers’ digital delivery of news may change in the next few years.
        3. Online managers discuss the prospects for all digital newspapers – no print.
  2. WNN Backgrounders (one for each newspaper)
    1. In-depth personnel and other key operating data about each newspaper including:
      1. Number of personnel overall.
      2. Annual consumption of newsprint.
      3. Percentage breakdown of revenue sources.
      4. Number of newsroom personnel.
      5. Size and allocation of news staff.
      6. Catalog of key digital news software.
      7. Catalog of news platforms.
  3. WNN Newspapers’ Enterprise stories
    1. A collection of five or more recent enterprise stories from each newspaper, which demonstrate the high quality of reporting produced by each newspaper and which may serve as examples for students seeking models for newspaper reporting.
  4. WNN “J-Epiphanies” (Journalists’ Epiphanies)
    1. Publishers, editors and online news managers provide short anecdotes about a moment in each of their careers – an epiphany -- when “the power and purpose of journalism” became clear to them.
  5. WNN Links
    1. Hot hyperlinks to each newspaper’s active website.
  6. WNN “The story of the newspaper”
    1. Each newspaper has designated a person to provide a brief, informal oral summary of a newspaper’s history, citing the key turnings points in its development.
  7. WNN Bonus Reports
    1. The Bonus Reports are videos of interviews with selected newspaper industry observers who provide knowledge about and assessments of the newspaper industry with timely insight into its current climate, practices and financial status. Videos of WNN public presentations are also included.

WNN INSTRUCTIONAL TOPICS

Here is a list of some learning topic areas addressed on the WNN website.

  1. Career Planning
    • Prospects and preparation
    • Preparing for convergence media
    • New jobs --- digital management, audience development
  2. Digital Media
    • Converting from print to multi-media
    • Gaining expertise in new media
    • Monetizing digital media
    • Engaging new audiences
  3. Enterprise Reporting
    • Lessons about reporting from J-Epiphanies and enterprise stories
    • Analyzing the effectiveness of multi-media in storytelling
    • Selecting appropriate multi-media channels to tell a story
  4. Journalism Ethics
    • Attitudes toward codes of ethics
    • Online ethics
    • Managing online reporting
    • Managing reader comments
  5. Journalism History
    • Ethnic newspapers - “The Story of the Newspaper”
  6. Mass Communication
    • Who are the journalists and what do they do? What are their value systems?
    • Mass media trends
    • Role of newspapers in democracy
  7. News Media Business
    • Identifying, selecting and managing innovation and technology
    • Refocusing, re-incentivizing the sales staff
    • Analyzing readership habits
    • Balancing the financial investment between digital and print
    • Adjusting operations to support new products
    • Launching new products
  8. News Media Management
    • Managing a business in transition
    • Leading change in the newsroom culture
    • Newspaper case studies
    • Managing staff reductions
    • Prioritizing resources and coverage