| NEW
DELHI: A majority of 85 per cent of editors from all over the world are optimistic
about the future of newspapers, though 44 per cent believe on-line will be the
most common way to read the news ten years from now and 35 per cent believe print
will reign supreme. While fifty-four per cent
think shareholders and advertisers pose the principal threat in the future to
editorial independence of newspapers, nineteen per cent of respondents - mostly
from the developing world - cite political pressure as the main threat, according
to the first Newsroom Barometer Survey released at a press meet at the Reuters
office here today. The "Newsroom Barometer"
was conducted by Zogby International for the Paris-based World Editors Forum and
Reuters. The results of the survey are contained in Trends in Newsrooms 2007,
the annual WEF report on the latest editorial developments from around the world
(http://www.trends-in-newsrooms.org). The Newsroom Barometer, a partnership among
WEF, Zogby and Reuters, will be conducted annually to assess changes in attitudes
and strategies in newsrooms around the world.
The survey of 435 editors-in-chief,
deputy editors and other senior news executives from around the world, of whom
half are from Europe, provides a picture of an industry in transition, but one
that is rapidly adapting to the new media environment, according to a World Editors
Forum (WEF) release. The survey was conducted over three months from October 8
to December 7 last year.
The survey found optimism even among eighty per
cent of the newspapers whose circulation decreased over the past five years.
One in ten felt mobile devices will be the most common platform, while seven
per cent cited e-paper. Two out of 10 respondents said it will be technologies
that are still in the emerging stage.
Two-thirds believed opinion and
analysis pages will grow in importance; and half were convinced that the quality
of journalism will improve with just around 25 per cent feeling it will worsen
in the next ten years.
Eight in ten respondents viewed online and new
media as a welcome addition. Those with high volume web traffic -- more than 200,000
unique visitors per day -- are more likely to view new media positively, but the
majority of editors at newspapers with modest traffic or no web sites also viewed
new media positively.
Three in ten respondents viewed free newspapers
as a threat to the market, while the majority had a more benign view -- 34 per
cent viewed them as a welcome addition, and 28 per cent considered them negligible.
Smaller newspapers are more likely to see free papers as a threat than larger
newspapers, perhaps because larger newspapers have the resources to fight off
free paper competition, as well as produce their own free papers.
The
respondents were almost evenly split over whether the majority of news, both print
and online, will be free in the future. Three-quarters of respondents viewed the
trends toward increased interactivity between news organizations and their readers
as positive for quality journalism, while only 8 per cent took a negative view.
Training journalists in new media was cited most often by editors as a priority
to increase editorial quality. Hiring more journalists was the second most frequently
cited priority.
"Eighty-five per cent of senior news executives see
a rosy future for their newspaper, and it's quite a surprise," said Bertrand
Pecquerie, Director of the WEF which is an organization of the World Association
of Newspapers that represents senior newsroom personnel. "Editors recognize
competition from online sources and free papers, and in turn are making efforts
to adapt to 21st century readership," he said. WAN represents 18,000 newspapers;
its membership includes 76 national newspaper associations, newspapers and newspaper
executives in 102 countries, 12 news agencies and ten regional and world-wide
press groups.
"They know how to effectively make the transition to
online journalism without reducing editorial quality. Editors-in-chief realize
that content matters more than ever and cutting newsroom resources is not at all
an effective solution: the reshaping of news will take place with journalists,
rather than at their expense."
Monique Villa, Managing Director of
Reuters Media, said: "The Newsroom Barometer survey reveals an industry ready
and willing to face dramatic change. Training journalists in new media skills
has emerged as the most popular method for senior editors to increase editorial
quality in their newsrooms, and 51 per cent believe that the general quality of
journalism will improve over the next decade."
“Many editors
view news as a 'conversation' with readers rather than a 'lecture' from journalists,
and the perceived increase in the importance of analysis and opinion pages shows
newspaper editors realize that they must change their content offering in order
to survive and prosper," Villa added.
Zogby International is a public
opinion, research, and business solutions firm with experience operating in 65
countries around the globe and is led by founder John Zogby, President and CEO.
The firm is headquartered in Utica , New York , with offices in Washington D.C.
and Dubai , United Arab Emirates . Full details of the survey can be found at
http://www.editorsweblog.org. | 
