The newspaper man is not happy. The global newspaper industry is considered by many to be technically dead. The problem that caused this almost-sudden death is said to be the change in people’s preferences. More people are tuning online to get their news fix. This is seen as a problem by the newspaper man. The newspaper man is possibly not that bright.

The problem is way too typical. I am sick and tired of quoting this as the example of choice, but had the railways companies of old known that they were not in the ‘trains business’ but rather in the ‘transport’ business, they would have been the first to buy up those airplanes. But they did not. The newspaper man seems to be making that mistake as well, whenever he complains of ‘dwindling subscribers’. All smart newspaper men already have booming online presence and websites that generate a substantial bit of revenue. Why? Because the newspapers are not in the business of selling paper, they are in the business of selling information (or more aptly, the newspaper man is in the business of selling entertainment).

Investigative journalism, for example, is entertaining and hence in the employ of the newspaper man. Otherwise all investigative journos would be hired by the Police and intelligence set ups.

If the market now consumes information via the web, so that is where the ‘focus’ should be. Insisting that tangible media is what you do, will only make you obsolete all the more quickly.