Doug DavidoffLast week, I was interviewed by John Lindner of the Baltimore Sun as part of his ongoing series of podcasts about bloggers and blogging. Click here to listen to the interview.
As I talked about this blog and how it’s grown in popularity, I was fascinated by the interviewer’s reaction to my explanation of commoditization and the examples of it I gave.
Newspapers such as The Baltimore Sun have been struggling to retain readers in the face of competition from cable, internet, blogs and a multitude of other sources. News has pretty much become a commodity. What newspapers need is a way to differentiate themselves as a news source.
What they have going for them is a news-gathering infrastructure and mass-marketing business model that has worked for generations. What’s tough is the raw materials used to produce newspapers is getting more expensive as is the distribution system. Online features such as the podcast series I was being interviewed for, is one attempt to cultivate a younger audience that has been lost to the internet.
What most newspapers can’t seem to grasp is that the same editorial authority they wielded for centuries to mold public opinion, drive consumer activity and shape the political landscape, is almost tragically out of step with today’s culture of social media, brand hijacking, and instant messaging.
I have to give John Lindner and the Baltimore Sun credit for at least trying to understand the nature of the new conversation, even if they can’t seem to actually get in on it.