Information wants to be free, reporters want to be paid, Part 28

Dean Singleton, who has shut down more newspapers than most reporters ever worked for, says the future of newspapers is, well, paper.

Speaking to the National Conference of Editorial Writers in Salt Lake City, where he owns one of the two dailies, Singleton is quoted as saying, "Don't let people tell you that print is dead, 'cause it's not. If there is no future for the printed newspaper, then there is no future at all. ... There isn't enough revenue online to provide for our future."

The problem with that postulate is, of course, the “no future at all” aspect, but let's not dwell on that or the large asteroid about to hit the planet.

Singleton, who is the CEO of MediaNews Group and president of The Associated Press, outlines a multi-step plan for newspapers to survive.

First, stop giving away everything online. But that does not mean necessarily charging for online content either.

“Everyone talks about paid content,” Single says, while talking about building a “relationship” with customers. “But that misses the point. We aren’t adding a new line on our interactive P&Ls for revenue through pay content. What we are doing is establishing a relationship with our print reader, establishing value to the content produced in the newsrooms by not giving it away, and yes, if we make a bit of money through some premium information that’s a plus. …”

He says the Web should be used for breaking news, creating a news site, not a newspaper site.

Looking into the future, Singleton thinks “it will be better than it is today, although not as good as it was yesterday. It will be a combination of print, online, wireless mobile and niche products …”

The text of his speech is available on the NCEW Web site.