The Value of "Being First"

I've watched with a lot of curiosity as the news media has tried to figure out Barack Obama's choice for Vice President. This led to a good deal of speculation and revelations from unnamed sources.

In journalism, there's always a good amount of emphasis on being the first to break a story. But as a former TV News reporter and anchor, I've come to regard the quest to be first as often an empty one. The premise is that viewers will see that you had the story first and thus you will gain their viewing allegiance. Think back four years ago. Who was first to break the story of John Kerry selecting John Edwards as his running mate? The same question applies 8 years ago to the Bush/Cheney ticket. The answers do not readily come to mind.

If you are breaking a news story that no one else is aware of, like Watergate, then the value of being first is considerable. But there is a difference between reporting something first and being the first in a pack to report on something first. A viewer will likely select a new source for a variety of reasons, which research has found can include surprising things like wardrobe and hairstyles.

Contrary to what many editors and news directors believe, their audience does not sit at home with scorecards to determine who scooped whom. The idea that "first makes you the best" is an out of date metric.

If I Ran a Newspaper...

The recent hike in gas prices has made many park their cars and use public transportation to get to work.  This is especially true of the Tri-Rail train service that serves South Florida.  It's been enjoying record ridership.

At the same time, the area's newspapers continue to fight shrinking readership.  Yes, much of the decrease is due to people switching their readership from paper to online.  While I hear a lot of news of layoffs, I haven't heard much of a plan for long term survival from newspaper executives. One I talked to yesterday could say little else than, "We'll see what happens."

How do these two industries match up.  People riding public transportation need something to do to pass the time.  Reading a printed newspaper could fill that void.  It could be a special "riders edition," similar to the tabloids that the papers produce for free neighborhood distribution.  With more people riding the trains, it would assure the paper of being able to tap into a pretty wide demographic.   

Both papers that serve my area are relatively close to Tri-Rail stops.  In one case, the station is right behind one of its facilities.  If I ran a newspaper, I'd look to make a deal with the Tri-Rail folks ASAP.  It's a win-win for both industries.  The paper gets a new distribution source and the train gets an additional perk for its riders.