AMY GAHRAN: The Right Conversation

Jay Rosen on "The People Formerly Known as the Audience"

(NOTE: I'm cross-posting this from Poynter's E-Media Tidbits weblog, which is read mainly by mainstream journalists. But I think Jeffrey Treem -- noted below -- is right: this topic deserves examination beyond newsrooms.)

On June 27, NYU professor Jay Rosen published a bluntly worded clarion call to mainstream media organizations: The People Formerly Known as the Audience

Here's my favorite quote...

How to Foster News Conversations

(NOTE: I'm cross-posting this from Poynter's E-Media Tidbits, another blog that I edit.)

Today in Editor & Publisher online, Steve Outing (former E-Media Tidbits editor and current contributor to e-Media Tidbits) just published an excellent article: How to Make Your Web Site More Conversational.

This is a must-read piece. Outing outlines several specific tips and strategies for fostering constructive, vibrant online conversations about the news. (Disclosure: I'm quoted in this article, but that's not why I'm recommending it. Steve really did a great job with this one.)

Why bother fostering online conversations about the news? Outing indicates that doing so is no longer a luxury: "The Internet enables the conversation, and 21st-century news consumers are becoming used to the idea that their voices now can be spread far and wide -- just like the voices of professional journalists."

To that I'd add: Failing to deliver what your  audience or community has come to commonly expect is always bad for business.

In my opinion, the main reason why news organizations should foster strong online conversations boils down to money...

Kill the official web site? Hmm...

Over at In Over Your Head (one of the most beautifully designed blogs I've ever seen, incidentally), Julien Smith recently posted a rather bold musing in his article "The Value of Authentic Conversation":

“Why not even, in the long term, eliminate the concept of the ‘official website!’ No one takes that seriously anyway!”

He's got a point about credibility vs. "officialdom." Personally, I think it's becoming crucial for individuals and organizations to each have their own specific "home base" on the web, a place where people can go specifically to get their direct perspective. It's a matter of sourcing: It's important to hear what people have to say for themselves.

But also, if the information presented on a "home base" such as a company web site is nothing but inauthentic spin, Julien's right: Who's gonna care?

Here's what I commented to Julien...

Cory Doctorow on Traditional Publishing vs. Conversational Media

Yesterday at Boing Boing (perhaps the most popular blog on the net), Cory Doctorow published a brilliant essay on the backward mindset of traditional book publishers -- which also succinctly expressed the core value of conversational media.

See: Why Publishing Should Send Fruit-Baskets to Google

It's a thoughtful analysis of the Google Book Search service and the boneheaded way that traditional publishers have been fighting it. Cory's right: Instead of "letting slip their dogs of law" to nip incessantly at Google's heels in the hope of securing a slice of Book Search ad revenue, book publishers should embrace the T-Bone steaks that Book Search could regularly toss them in the form of increased sales and expanded markets.

Further down in this essay, Cory explores one of the underlying reasons traditional book publishing is in trouble: the ascent of conversational media. That is, the human mind is more attuned -- and attracted -- to conversation or interaction than monologues. Reading a book (even a novel that includes lots of action and dialogue) is fundamentally a passive experience. It can't compete well with more engaging media.

As the core audience of print books ages and generations weaned on conversational media come to the economic forefront, and as the tools of conversational media get better and easier, traditional book publishers may well find themselves sinking fast. As they slip beneath the quicksand, I bet they'll regret how they've behaved toward Google Book Search -- and how drastically they misjudged their shifting audiences...