Once a month, I meet with readers Montreal Gazette. Since 2020, I am a columnist there. The journal is celebrating its 245th yeare It’s been a tough few weeks for this anniversary and Canada’s oldest daily newspaper. First came the announcement of new layoffs, and then, last Friday, the names of those leaving the magazine. All craftsmen of the trade deserve the title, they are too modest to accept: legend.
You should always worry when a newsroom is downsized. And since the announcement Montreal Gazette, many elected officials and readers shared the fear of seeing the newspaper one day disappear and at this time, especially, have fewer resources to cover local news. Local news represents an important social construct in all markets. Written in English in a French-speaking province, it is no less. On the contrary.
Downsizing means fewer resources to produce the paper version. This may be my romantic side, but paper is still an important tool for me. In newspaper or magazine form, I still subscribe to it. I’m not a dinosaur, and I obviously feel the importance of digital. My many subscriptions also prove it. Today, the measure of a newspaper’s success is precisely its number of digital subscribers. It represents the heart of its turnover. That is true everywhere. For example, the French newspaper the worldHas over 500,000 subscribers. More than 80% of them are in digital format.
My favorite case study
Easy to forget, but 10 years ago The Washington Post was on the brink of a financial abyss. At the dawn of new consumer realities, its status as an icon and the scoops of yesteryear could not save the newspaper from questionable management. In 2013, the WaPo Marty hired Baron as editor, hoping he could revive the paper. It’s healthy to believe Barron is willing to do that, knowing success at the helm of direction. Miami HeraldAnd then to that The Boston Globe. But Marty Barron’s experience and talent weren’t the only lifelines that saved him The Washington Post. A few months after Barron took office, Jeff Bezos bought the paper. The Amazon founder and space cowboy brought a new vision to it and invested USD 250 million in it. Before the visit of Marty Barron and Jeff Bezos, The The Washington Post had 42,000 digital subscriptions. Today, it stands at 2.7 million, slightly behind Wall Street Journaland behind New York Times, With 8.4 million online subscribers, it is number one in its class worldwide.
The Los Angeles Times It also experienced tough times until it was acquired in 2018 by billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong. Soon after, Xiong paid US$100 million to the newspaper.
It was with these examples in mind that Montrealer Mitch Garber recently made Beacon calls to the owner of Postmedia Group. Montreal Gazette and more than 130 other media titles, incl National Post And this Vancouver Sun. Postmedia did not respond to Mitch Garber’s proposal. But last week, the group formed an advisory panel of 11 community and business leaders from Montreal to recommend recovery strategies.
The billionaire + newspaper formula can work. The The Washington Post And this Los Angeles Times Just two examples. It’s a marriage, especially if there’s no editorial interference from the owner of the checkbook.
Another condition for success is to remember that news is a public service, not necessarily profitable. In an interview 20 years ago, the late Canadian journalist Peter Jennings recalled that the hardest thing that ever happened to television news was starting to make money.
The advantage of a billionaire newspaper owner is that he or she has other profitable assets. In Jeff Bezos’ case, it’s Amazon, Blue Origin and perhaps soon the Commanders, the Washington football team. For surgeon Patrick Soon-Shiong, it’s part of medicine and the Lakers, the Los Angeles basketball team.
Therefore, they may for the time being be content with the profits of their respective journals without claiming profits.
We have a civic responsibility to protect local media and an independent press. The Bezos and Soon-Shiong of this world seem to understand this, and if getting newspapers represents hunting trophies for them, does it really matter?
It is often said, with good reason, that you can judge a country by how it treats its elders. I think he can also be judged by the way he treats his journalists and his journalists. There are many examples of the dangers of limited journalism, and we don’t have to look far to see them. How lucky, what a privilege, to have access to free media. You should not lose anything. Democracy folds in darkness. It’s true and that’s Win’s motto The Washington Post. And let’s light the lights (Hail Montreal Gazette).
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