Comments on: Google and the wires torpedo newspapers http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/ ... at the intersection of media, technology, business and the web Fri, 29 Aug 2008 01:35:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Damon Kiesow http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-324321 Damon Kiesow Tue, 11 Sep 2007 19:46:16 +0000 http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-324321 Our first experience with the new AP/Google partnership: http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=yearbook&btnG=Search+News The yearbook story was an offbeat piece that was picked up by the national wire. So, instead of Google giving our version (NashuaTelegraph.com) top prominence - the AP/Google page gets the traffic. Also at issue - even the regional publications that picked up the wire story (Boston.com, WCAX.com) had preference over our original report. Readership-wise we were the only publication with the photo at the time so ours was really the best report. But - despite our angst at this - we have the last laugh as Fark.com ended up pointing at our version, driving 40 - 50k pageviews to that one story this morning. Our first experience with the new AP/Google partnership:

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=yearbook&btnG=Search+News

The yearbook story was an offbeat piece that was picked up by the national wire. So, instead of Google giving our version (NashuaTelegraph.com) top prominence - the AP/Google page gets the traffic.

Also at issue - even the regional publications that picked up the wire story (Boston.com, WCAX.com) had preference over our original report. Readership-wise we were the only publication with the photo at the time so ours was really the best report.

But - despite our angst at this - we have the last laugh as Fark.com ended up pointing at our version, driving 40 - 50k pageviews to that one story this morning.

]]> By: Dhyana Sansoucie http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-324188 Dhyana Sansoucie Tue, 11 Sep 2007 16:14:37 +0000 http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-324188 AP seems more and more to be operating as a way to earn money off local papers, but their coverage is not improving. They are using new technologies to make searching their content easier (for an added price), but the quality of their own writing is deteriorating, as is the extent of coverage they provide. They are less and less reliable to cover our regional news stories. The writing and editing standards seem to be slipping as well. Smaller papers with good local reporting will do fine, and we make an effort to focus our online efforts solely on local news. Pretty soon, though, AP may price itself out of what smaller and midsize papers are willing to pay. Everything is focusing more and more on local coverage ... and AP isn't doing much of a job there at all. The bigger metropolitan papers may find AP less and less a bargain as well. Do newspapers need the AP? Probably. Local papers being able to submit their biggest stories works well. AP's rewrites aren't so great, though. Which one would be featured on Google News? AP's rewritten shorter version or the local version that got sent along to AP, and which organization would get the traffic? AP seems more and more to be operating as a way to earn money off local papers, but their coverage is not improving. They are using new technologies to make searching their content easier (for an added price), but the quality of their own writing is deteriorating, as is the extent of coverage they provide. They are less and less reliable to cover our regional news stories. The writing and editing standards seem to be slipping as well.

Smaller papers with good local reporting will do fine, and we make an effort to focus our online efforts solely on local news.

Pretty soon, though, AP may price itself out of what smaller and midsize papers are willing to pay. Everything is focusing more and more on local coverage … and AP isn’t doing much of a job there at all.

The bigger metropolitan papers may find AP less and less a bargain as well.

Do newspapers need the AP? Probably. Local papers being able to submit their biggest stories works well. AP’s rewrites aren’t so great, though. Which one would be featured on Google News? AP’s rewritten shorter version or the local version that got sent along to AP, and which organization would get the traffic?

]]> By: Danny Sullivan http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-318870 Danny Sullivan Tue, 04 Sep 2007 21:12:58 +0000 http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-318870 Alan, good point. Browsing through Yahoo News today, I note that they do seem to be reprinting from most of the sources they list rather than sending people off. It wasn't always that way. In fact, it's a good reason not to use Yahoo News, because of the lack of variety. But me, I'm a lover not a fighter. Sorry, I like Dangerfield. I mean, I'm a searcher, not a browser. I rarely browse headlines. I search, and searches on Yahoo News do indeed kick you off the site to other sources in many occasions. Alan, good point. Browsing through Yahoo News today, I note that they do seem to be reprinting from most of the sources they list rather than sending people off. It wasn’t always that way. In fact, it’s a good reason not to use Yahoo News, because of the lack of variety.

But me, I’m a lover not a fighter. Sorry, I like Dangerfield. I mean, I’m a searcher, not a browser. I rarely browse headlines. I search, and searches on Yahoo News do indeed kick you off the site to other sources in many occasions.

]]> By: Sameer http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-318729 Sameer Tue, 04 Sep 2007 16:46:49 +0000 http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-318729 This does make me re-think CNN's stated reasons for not renewing its contract with Reuters. They say its related to cost cutting (which I'm sure has some truth to it) but it may also have something to do with too much reliance on an outside agency for what might be considered a core competency - reporting. With Google paving the way for aggregators/distributors to source content directly from newswires, CNN would have less to worry about since more and more of it's content will now be original reporting. This does make me re-think CNN’s stated reasons for not renewing its contract with Reuters. They say its related to cost cutting (which I’m sure has some truth to it) but it may also have something to do with too much reliance on an outside agency for what might be considered a core competency - reporting.

With Google paving the way for aggregators/distributors to source content directly from newswires, CNN would have less to worry about since more and more of it’s content will now be original reporting.

]]> By: Rocky http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-318633 Rocky Tue, 04 Sep 2007 13:56:24 +0000 http://www.mathewingram.com/work/2007/09/01/google-and-the-wires-torpedo-newspapers/#comment-318633 Mathew- Great write up. While much of the discussion has focused on traffic loss, I think there's something equally (if not more) significant. Google's story page has the most user-centric design. Instead of throwing obstacles in the way of users like most news sites do -- registration requirements, pop ups, etc. -- the page is clean and loads fast. I did a <a href="http://blog.agrawals.org/2007/09/03/comparing-google-news-to-other-news-outlets/" rel="nofollow">screen cast comparing the presentation of the same AP story on three different news sites with Google News's presentation.</a> For the user, the Google presentation is the clear winner. Mathew-

Great write up. While much of the discussion has focused on traffic loss, I think there’s something equally (if not more) significant.

Google’s story page has the most user-centric design. Instead of throwing obstacles in the way of users like most news sites do — registration requirements, pop ups, etc. — the page is clean and loads fast.

I did a screen cast comparing the presentation of the same AP story on three different news sites with Google News’s presentation.

For the user, the Google presentation is the clear winner.

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