I am going back to blackberry as soon as my contract expires.
The Guardian is, in my opinion, the best newspaper in the world.
This is, of course, only my opinion, (and has nothing to do with our partnership with them for The Guardian Media Academy)
This morning, The Press Gazette annouced that The Guardian is going to move to a ‘digital first’ priority, putting the printed paper second:
“The historic shift will see The Guardian become a “digital-first†organisation, staff were told today, meaning that investment and effort is to be focused on digital rather than print.
Alan Rusbridger, Managing Editor, has long been on the cutting edge of new technologies and new approaches to journalism. His bold decision to migrate the paper to online, tablets and smart phones carries with it a transition from paper to screens.
And screens, which are the heart and soul of tablets, online and smart phones, demand video.
They are a natural match. Screens call for video. How much text do you see on the first screen to penetrate homes, TV sets? Not that people did not try. TeleText was a good example. With hundreds of cable channels available, a few brave souls had the idea of running text on one TV channel with endlessly updated news.
It did not work.
It did not work because it was a fundemental mismatch between platform potential and platform delivery.
When the platform has the potential to deliver a more dynamic medium (video) and delivers a less dynamic one (text), readers migrate away to the more dynamic media on other channels.
The same is now going to be true of screens on tablets and phones.
So there is going to be a massive surge in the demand and need for video that is high quality, low cost and quickly delivered.
Also video that can be created simply and easily on a laptop (or an iPhone for that matter).
I recently met with a young graduate of a journalism school looking for his first job in TV.
Not TV, I said.
Newspapers.
And magazines.
Here is the future.
Go for it.
*and by the way, the best way to get into this new world (or a very good one indeed) might be to attend the 4-day video journalism professional bootcamp at The Guardian this July in London. 20% discount to all nyvs members!
