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I spent part of my Sunday morning visiting dozens of newspaper websites and by the time I was done I found myself wanting to scream. WAKE UP! LOOK AT WHAT YOU ARE DOING!
Too many of the sites I visited looked as if they’re frozen in time or, at the very [...]
Recently, I’ve found myself thinking a lot about Ron Popeil. An American inventor, Popeil is responsible for such gadgets as the Chop-O-Matic, the Veg-O-Matic, Hair in a Can Spray and the Showtime Rotisserie Oven which he hocked on many late night infomercials. It was [...]
I thought I would share this address that I gave at the Bi-Co Boot Camp at Bryn Mawr College. The event was a gathering of students from both Bryn Mawr and Haverford College who work, or are interested in working at the [...]
That’s right, it’s time for another Carnival of Journalism and this month, I’m proud to be hosting. Not sure what a blog carnival is? Check out this entry on Wikipedia. The Carnival of Journalism includes posts from some of the [...]
Over the years, I’ve interviewed my fair share of candidates. And while the positions I’ve been hiring for have changed and the candidates have varied, here are five areas that keep my head shaking in disbelief.
So consider these points as either observations or, if you’re looking for a job, words [...]
OK, here’s a prime example of a lost linking opportunity that actually annoyed at least one reader (me).
On Sunday, the New York Times posted a story “[...]
I believe that the phrase “no one can do it all and frankly no one should” must be part of the discussion at any newspaper serious about their online operation.
As I wrote in a previous [...]
I have a question for the “underpaid, overworked, frustrated, pissed off and ignored media professionals” who are “publicly and anonymously” venting their anger on angryjournalist.com. I would like to know what each of you are doing in your own newsroom or news organization to change…anything? What effort(s) [...]
When was the last time that you went through your closet? Is there a chance you still have a Members Only jacket or a pair of parachute pants? Over the years have you added new pieces to your wardrobe without getting rid of [...]
Journalism, specifically newspapers, lost a champion and I lost a friend and mentor Tuesday night when Jonathan Maslow lost his year-long battle with cancer.
Jonathan, 59, was assistant city editor at one of my former newspapers, the Herald News of West Paterson, NJ. But that experience doesn’t [...]
Do you know who is talking about you?
Newspaper reporters are used to readers writing letters to the editor complaining about or complementing their work. They know that their names can be raised at governmental meetings and even in other publications. But are they equally aware that their names may appear [...]
One of my former newspapers, a Gannett owned publication in Cherry Hill, NJ, recently unveiled it’s redesign. While it appears very similar to the Pluck-based redesigns released by other Gannett newspapers, I’m [...]
I recently wanted to get in touch with a former colleague, but when I visited his newspaper’s website I quickly discovered that reaching anyone at his newspaper wouldn’t be that simple. And his newspaper is not alone. If we’re in the communication business, why do we make it so difficult [...]
How fast can you turn your ship?
When I look at many newspaper websites, I just can’t help but wonder why some stories are in a featured homepage slot and, even more so, why they remain there for so long.
I recognize that every market has it’s own issues and what is [...]
Technical problems persist. I hope to have a new post up later this evening. Sorry for the interruption and I appreciate your continued support and interest.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
The Palm Beach Post has decided to actually do what so many people in journalism have only been willing to talk about. But with the exception of a few blog posts including one from Erica Smith of graphicdesignr.net fame, that news has largely [...]
Too many newspaper websites are simply online recreations of their printed products. These sites do little to take advantage of the opportunities being online provide. And worse, what bad habits they have in print, they replicate online.
Case in point — long stories.
It is well known that “[...]
I wonder if, during the height of the writer’s strike, newspapers missed out on an opportunity to reintroduce their printed products and/or websites to readers looking for alternatives to reruns and Reality TV? It just seems to me that, as more people were turning to their computers and/or picking up [...]
So evidently someone was thinking that there’s more that TMZ could teach newspapers then just how to run a story meeting. On Friday, TMZ Founder Harvey Levin spoke to journalism students at [...]
If you think that surviving your state’s primary or caucus now means you can chill, I would urge you to think again. While covering the political machinations leading up to the party conventions or Nov. 3 might not be glamorous or exciting, to your readers it’s just as important.
For many [...]
It struck me while I was cleaning my apartment recently that, for someone who works in the newspaper industry, I subscribe to a lot of magazines. Not only do I get them in the mail, but I actually read them. And I don’t just glance through them, I read them [...]
At too many newspapers reporters have been given smart phones to use when they’re out in their beats only to return to the office and work on circa-1980s desktop computers. They sit on chairs that are held together by bubblegum and Scotch tape and talk on phones that are a [...]
I’ve noticed that quite a few media/journalism bloggers have written posts about the will.i.am/Jesse Dylan produced Barack Obama music video. Bloggers from Jeff Jarvis to [...]
Increasingly, on newspaper websites, I see “Most Viewed,” “Most popular” and “Most Linked” lists. Having my own blog, I know that these types of features can help increase the amount of time that people spend on a site and interlinking helps spread page rank throughout the site.
But as a visitor [...]
Maybe newsrooms need to take a page from websites and use the “private beta mode” approach to introduce new hardware or software. There is nothing like watching the excitement as online users scramble to try and get an invite to a recently launched site. And the buzz [...]
I find it interesting that we frequently talk about context. We bemoan the lack of it and plead for its inclusion. Yet at the same time many, many, many media and/or journalism bloggers choose to use as daily blog posts their del.icio.us or other social bookmarking feeds. And in most [...]
In his blog The Exploding Newsroom, John Hassell poses the fascinating question — just how do newspapers build relationships with local bloggers? I’ll admit that I started thinking about writing this piece after just reading the beginning of his [...]
Many newspapers have created space on their homepages to highlight news that is breaking or new. Often these columns or sections are given a headline of “Breaking News,” “News Updates” or “Latest Headline.” Readers, I believe, expect to find just that — current news of some significance, be that crime, [...]
While last week, I focused on tips and suggestions for reporters, this week my emphasis has been on assistant editors. And I hope that you’ve found my suggestions — personal chat rooms, [...]
I know that many people believe that a website is only worth what you get out of it. Well today, many of you received a personal email from me encouraging you to join Wired Journalists, a new online community. To give you a sense of how [...]
So I’m guessing that your newsroom, like many, is populated with reporters who are comfortable working, eating and even sleeping at their desks. So it’s no surprise that, when you try to hold a brown bag lunch meeting or a brain-storming session, only the usual suspects attend. Increasing participation is [...]
OK, judging from the response I received to the recent team building tech and postmortem posts, maybe it would help to [...]
Last week, I offered tips that reporters could use to keep and advance their careers. They included: publishing your own newsletter, using double-sided business cards, [...]
Are there any newspaper reporters using Twitter to cover council meetings? I know that we’ve seen examples of sporting events being covered via Twitter, but I don’t recall anyone saying that they are using it to report on municipal types of events.
I’m sure there are those of [...]
I’ll admit that I was initially dismayed to read that Editor & Publisher would be “blogging the vote in Nevada and South Carolina.” I wondered what could they add to the coverage of the Nevada caucuses and the South Carolina GOP primary. And it’s [...]
How often do you bring your readers together? I know that probably sounds like a strange question and I can already imagine some of you sitting there shaking your heads as you read this, but seriously, how often do you get a group of readers (and even potential readers) together [...]
For those of you who use Internet Explorer and have visited editor on the verge recently, you know that I have been trying to fix a programming problem that resulted in the site not appearing correctly. Well I am happy [...]
So now that you’re publishing a weekly newsletter highlighting your work AND interacting with readers and potential readers AND you now have a double-sided business card that displays all the great ways people can interact with you AND you’ve become the envy of your colleagues and the pride of your [...]
OK, so enough talking about ways to save the newspaper industry or the local newspaper. How about spending some time on something way more important, like how to save and advance your own reporting career? Well I’ve got an idea that will impress your editors, make your colleagues jealous and [...]
I have to say that I’m surprised that there are still news organizations even contemplating a pay model.
While reading the Terms of Service (I know, I know, hold the lectures about the geekiness of reading TOS) for one of my local newspapers, I came across this gem:
“Currently, service is free [...]
Is it a bad thing if the New York Times is repurposing blog content for print?
On Wednesday, New York Observer Leon Neyfakh, reported in his “Off the Record” column [...]
Does your site offer complete meals or just a tasting menu? The debate over partial versus full RSS feeds is far from new, but is just as relevant today. And as more newspapers, thankfully, offer RSS feeds, the issue is worth reexamining.
This is another topic where, I believe, the online [...]
A friend of mine and former colleague emailed me Monday. He’s just been appointed city editor at a daily newspaper and is addressing his staff for the first time on Thursday and asked (probably half jokingly) if I had any words of wisdom.
Knowing that this is his first management post, [...]
Interesting piece by Edward Wasserman on MiamiHerald.com today. In “Journalism becoming a consumer product” Wasserman quotes from my “Get the most from your online data” post. Also included in the piece is [...]
In some of the feedback that I received to my “Newsroom leaders, change or step aside” post, readers noted that surely there must be senior editors who could be role models for the rest of the newspaper industry. I included News & [...]
Response to my “Newsroom leaders, change or step aside” post has come fast and in some cases, furious. But I wanted to share two posts that were written in response that I feel represent the range of emotions the piece generated. David Cohn at DigiDave posted “[...]
One of the great things about your newspaper having a website is that the painful sting of getting beaten does not have to last a full day.
It used to be that reporters would grab a copy of the competitor’s newspaper on the way to work, discover that they had [...]
Data is all the rage nowadays. From Gannett’s Asbury Park Press’s DataUniverse to Roanoke’s DataSphere it seems as if every newspaper wants to have an online portion of their website devoted to [...]
If a person were to read much of the recent discussion about the ways journalists (AKA reporters and columnists) should be compensated, they might walk away believing that performance-based compensation is a foreign concept in today’s news organizations.
Yet as anyone who [...]
I want to wish all you Editor on the Verge readers a very happy New Year.
And since the year is just getting started, here’s was you can expect from me in 2008:
Recent posts by Jack Lail and Patrick Beeson got me wondering about how newspapers use the online data they collect.
On Sunday, Jack wrote a post about the firing of career columnist [...]
Some of you may notice that I have removed the flashing Plusmo badge from my site. This shouldn’t be taken as a commentary on Plusmor or the mobile services they offer. Rather, I have uploaded a mobile plugin that will automatically sense your phone’s browser and provide it with the [...]
It’s particularly on days like Thursday, Dec. 27, when the Associated Press must feel good about it itself.
As most people now know, Thursday morning Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated on a street in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Although [...]
It’s the time of the year when seemingly every newspaper, news magazine and online news outlet is putting together their Year in Review and Best or Most Important Stories of the Year packages. I honestly don’t know who likes these more, readers or the people that work at the newspapers.
For [...]
Everyone loves a surprise, right?
When it comes to Hanukkah, Christmas for even birthday gifts, surprises are a big hit. But in terms of your website, surprises don’t really work.
Having been part of a number of redesigns, I can tell you that out of all the complaints that will typically come [...]
Although most newspaper companies appear set on a path that now includes significant emphasis on developing online products, just how they accomplish that varies from company to company. While some newspapers are seeking out partnerships, albeit even bad ones, others [...]
I don’t know about you, but I would never buy something from a store whose sign was falling off, that had graffiti scrawled on its walls, a window that can barely be seen through and a door that was dented — not to mention products that weren’t always current or [...]
I never thought that I would see my name or this blog mentioned in a story along with David Byrne and Brian Eno, but [...]
Conversations between reporters and editors are a great thing. But at many newspapers, they don’t happen nearly often enough and when it comes to covering breaking news, I’m afraid they happen even less.
We all are familiar with this [...]
Reporters who are interested in spending time out of their newsrooms while still pleasing their editors and maintaining productivity might consider adopting a simple practice — holding office hours.
In many cases, just the phrase “office hours” evokes thoughts of [...]
Please join me in congratulating the four Ottaway newspapers who are finalists in the Newspaper Association of America’s Digital Edge Awards.
I’m proud to be able to say that I work with the talented people at these sites and I’m happy, especially at [...]
Ryan Sholin had a nice tight post today.
Sweet and to the point (if he wrote for Gannett, corporate would have been proud) he recommended that reporters resist the urge to stand on the “sidelines,” and offered four [...]
I never would have considered a career in auto racing, but after reading Jack Lail’s post “What race cars and newspaper websites have in common,” I’m not as worried if I find myself [...]
Like many people, I read my local newspapers for the local news. Between the Internet and the 24-hour news networks, I think many of us like to give the limited amount of time that we have to read the newspaper to local stories.
Now if you’re a newspaper editor or publisher, [...]
Recently Howard Owens, Jeff Jarvis, Pat Thornton, and many, many other journalism/media bloggers have crafted posts about what newspaper journalists are or are not doing, about what they are doing right and what they [...]
Today many of us will wake up and grab the Saturday newspaper as we shuffle into the kitchen for a cup of coffee. But in many cases, the newspaper we’ll hold in our hands is a sad representation of what we would normally receive during the week. Actually, if it [...]
So I’m proud to be able to share with Editor on the verge readers that snow storm coverage suggestions I made in a recent post have been included in the Dec. 14 [...]
