Commentary: In 2012, musician Joe Walsh released the song “Analog Man.” The first line of the chorus goes, “I’m an analog man in a digital world …”
The first time I heard it, I thought, Joe Walsh has written a song about me.
That was about the time I was working for Digital First Media, temporary owners of the Sun-News, and had been named interim editor after Jim Lawitz left. During the process to replace him, I was told that they were looking for a “digital leader to take our digital newsroom into the digital future.” And no, I’m not making that up.
Digital First has come, gone and attempted to come again in the years since then, as community newspapers get traded back and forth among media corporations like baseball cards being swapped by young fans. But regardless of which corporation is in charge, the model is the same.
The future is digital. Print may not be dead yet, put they’re putting drops of poison in its breakfast every morning. And I understand why.
When it comes to immediacy and the ability to tell stories in a multitude of different ways, the newspaper might as well be chiseled on stone tablets in comparison to digital. Newspapers have space restrictions. Storytelling options are limited to words and photos. And, most devastating of all, they only get one shot a day.
The advent of online reporting has resolved all of those problems. Space is unlimited. Along with words and photos, reporters can also use video to tell their stories. And, breaking news can be reported at any time, both online and on social media where readers can get alerts to let them know that something has happened.
But, as is often the case, blessings come paired with curses.
Space may be unlimited, but online readers tend to have shorter attention spans. Long, in-depth stories are discouraged. The new reporting model calls for quick bits of the story that can be consumed on your phone.
Videos can enhance a story, but too often are now used as a substitute for detailed reporting that gives readers all of the facts needed to understand an issue. And, the ability to break news immediately inevitably means more mistakes.
Online reporting also allows for metrics that weren’t possible with print. Editors never knew for sure how many people were reading each story in the newspaper. But now they get exact reports of not only how many people read each story online, but also how long they read.
Once again, a blessing and a curse. Not surprisingly, the freakish and outrageous stories get the most hits. Crime stories typically top the list. A mugshot of a suspect with tattoos all over their face is pure gold. Stories about government corruption or the misuse of tax dollars don’t do nearly as well. Unless, of course, there’s a sex scandal.
The biggest curse of the transition from print to digital is the simple fact that it hasn’t been profitable. And, the result has been devastating. Newsrooms throughout the country have been gutted. Things like city and county government reporting get neglected as constantly shrinking resources are shifted to meet the demands of online readers.
I recognize that newspapers aren’t alone in this boat. Many industries have been adversely impacted by the Internet. But newspapers are unique in the role they have played in our democracy, which requires citizens to be informed and involved.
As antiquated as they may be, I’m still not sure what replaces the community newspaper. And I fear we will miss them when they are gone more than we now understand.
Walt Rubel can be reached at waltrubel@gmail.com.