News

BuzzFeed becomes a ‘serious news machine’ with new foreign editor

BuzzFeed is on a mission to become a force of high-quality international news coverage by hiring Miriam Elder, currently Moscow bureau chief for the Guardian, as its foreign editor. Elder will be working on “expanding and shaping the social news site’s foreign and overseas coverage [and] building a team of reporters who will break news and cover major world events.”

WAN-IFRA takes steps to control data leakage

The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) has launched a new initiative to ensure that users of news sites are protected from unauthorized collection of data, said an official press release published by Deputy CEO and Director of Communications and Public Affairs Larry Kilman on 8 June.

Mobile phone journalism helps engage South Africa’s youth

Participants at a special youth engagement session at this year’s World Newspaper Congress in Bangkok were informed about a project that uses cellphone journalism to engage young people. “Engaging the Young: Winners Tell All” took place on Wednesday 5 June, with the aim of teaching members of the news industry that no matter what business model they devise or platform they choose, “it will all be for naught if they do not pay smart attention to today’s youth.”

Who wants yesterday’s papers? Troc de presse bets lots of people do

In a world in which social exchanges are increasingly carried out online, via the impersonal channels of “social” media sites, the launch of website trocdepresse.com seems like a rather outdated venture. That’s because it focuses on developing face-to-face social links between individuals by encouraging them to exchange their copies of newspapers and magazines with one another.

‘We could see, touch and feel the future,’ says Internet pioneer Steve Crocker

One of the founding fathers of the Internet, Steve Crocker, offered some fascinating insights into his vision of the future of what has become a staple of modern life for so many of us today.

Have photo staffs become a luxury for newspapers?

The Chicago Sun-Times laid off its 28 staff photographers Thursday, prompting an outcry from photojournalists. But, putting aside grave proclamations about the industry (we’ll get to those later), will the newspaper be able to function without dedicated photographers? Analysts disagree.

Der Spiegel rethinks its strategy, aiming for synergy between print and digital content

German weekly magazine Der Spiegel, one of the powerhouses of international opinion journalism, is on the quest for a new medium between its paper and digital strategies, having suffered recent blows from internal conflicts, stiffening competition and the general economic crisis within the media world.

Paid versus Free: Dissent Breaks Out in the “Church of the Pay Wall”

The three little pigs guard the entrance at Guardian HQ in London, symbols of their open journalism campaign and free online news. USA Today, El Pais, La Presse, MailOnline and others also remain free, but are they the exceptions that prove the rule? Or the true visionaries?

Global advertisers discuss shift of classifieds to digital, both online and mobile

Advertisers from around the world gathered at the 23rd World Advertising Forum to discuss current trends in classified advertising, and the importance for news organisations to establish a presence on digital platforms. Classifieds have been a traditional revenue driver for print newspapers, but this model has been increasingly challenged by the advent of pure players and online competitors.

Business disruption is the norm, says Wired UK Editor David Rowan (with video)

We need to reframe the conversation around journalism and business models for news, without just talking about ‘digital’ and ‘paywalls,’ said David Rowan, editor of Wired UK, at the World Editors Forum in Bangkok. Wired is about the future, about people who are changing the world, about startups and entrepreneurs, and Rowan said he hoped to channel some of that mindset to “explain why we need to think bigger.”