NEWSROOM INFORMATION PRACTICES Results of a National Survey: Implications for News Organizations

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NEWSROOM INFORMATION PRACTICES Results of a
National Survey Implications for News
Organizations
Nora Paul and Kathleen Hansen University of
Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass
Communication and Institute for New Media
Studies

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Crisis in News Libraries to Crisis in
News Industry

• Heard about news library pressures
• Crisis in News Libraries held 11/01
• Decided the crisis was industry wide
• Newspapers moved from manufacturing to
• information serviceswhat did that imply?

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News Informatics

• The study of information structure its uses and
  functions, properties, and the technology used to
  record, organize, store, retrieve, and
  disseminate it.
• Information Access
• Information Training
• Information Quality Control
• Information Archiving
• Information Revenue
• Information Alerts

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Newsroom Information Practices Survey

• US daily circulation newspapers
• Sent to executive or managing editors
• Four circulation groupings
• 100,000,
• 50,000-100,000
• 25,000-50,000
• 1-25,000
• 94 response rate from 100,000 - 50 overall
• Looking for markers

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Information Access Marker Questions

• Does your news organization have a news library?
• Does your organization have a newsroom intranet
  linking to selected information sources?
• Do journalists in your newsroom have access to
  information services at their desks?

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Information Access Survey
Results

• 88 of total have a news library (100 of 50,000
  and above have a news library)
• 62 of total have an intranet
• 96 of total have access to information services
  at their desks

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Information Access Implications for
Convergence

• Converging information companies need to create
  central resources for staff to have access to
  same information
• Modeling internally the kinds of information
  resource development they intend to provide for
  the community is important

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Information Training Marker Questions

• Is someone responsible for in-house training for
  journalists on search and evaluation skills?
  (What is their title?)
• Is there a budget to send journalists to offsite
  training? (Has it increased or decreased?)
• Are new hires given information services
  orientation?

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Information Training Survey Results

• In-house trainer 48
• Budget for outside training 87
• 52 - decreased
• 12 - increased
• 28 - same
• In largest circulation size 76 have seen a
  decrease
• Orientation for new employees 86
• In newsrooms with staff size of 25-49 people 25
  have no orientation

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Information Training Implications for
Convergence

• As the largest news organizations ask staff to
  develop new skills and work modes, their training
  budgets are decreasing.

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Information Quality Control Marker
Questions

• Is there a method for routinely checking
  accuracy of news stories after publication?
• Agree or disagree Copy editors have less time
  to spend checking accuracy than two years ago.
• Is there an internally created and maintained
  stylebook?
• Are corrections appended to the original story?

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Information Quality Control Survey Results

• 75 have NO method in place for routinely
  checking the accuracy of news stories
• 54 agree there is less time for copy editors to
  check for quality and accuracy
• 83 have an internally created stylebook
• 76 attach corrections to original story

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Information Quality Control Implications
for Convergence

• In a complex media marketplace, news
  organizations distinction is their credibility.
• Quality control methods must be developed and
  routinely used.
• When corrections are made care must be paid to
  appending all versions.

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Information Archiving Marker Questions

• Is there an electronic archive of your print
  newspaper?
• If you have an electronic archive are text and
  graphics stored in same database?
• If there is an online publication is the
  online publications archive separate from the
  print archive?

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Information Archiving Survey Results

• 100 of 50,001 circulation papers have a
  digital archive, 67 of under 50,000 do.
• 29 store text and graphics in the same database
• 54 have an archive for the website separate
  from the print product archive

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Information Archiving Implications for
Convergence

• Multimedia archiving needs will grow.
• Digital asset management systems will be
  critical to successful multi-product convergence
  projects.

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Information Revenue Marker Questions

• If your organization has an electronic archive,
  does it generate revenue?
• Do you offer research-for-fee services?
• Do you create products from your archive that
  are repackaged and sold?

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Information Revenue Survey Results

• 54 say the archive generates revenue
• 39 offer research-for-fee service
• 30 repackage material from archive

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Information Revenue Implications for
Convergence

• Potential for new revenue streams from recycled
  content is hampered by inadequate digital asset
  management systems.
• Thinking about new uses of old material will
  provide return on investment.
• Partnerships with information packagers should
  be considered.

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Information Alerts Marker Questions

• Is there a way for intelligence about important
  trends to be shared?
• Is there someone in your organization who
  routinely generates and circulates reports about
  news industry trends?

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Information Alerts Survey Results

• 75 have a way to share information
• 35 have someone who generates reports about
  news industry trends
• in only 6 of the cases is it a news researcher
• in more than ½ the cases an editor was listed

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Information Alerts Implications for
Convergence

• The converged environment is complex and
  ever-changing.
• Routine surveillance is required to keep
  everyone informed.
• Assign a specific person in the newsroom this
  task.

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