Outing the bullies of the newspaper industry
Steve Outing has caused quite a stir with his recent column “Life Without the Print Edition.” What’s sad about the controversy is that he didn’t say anything at all controversial.
He points out the obvious: news is old, especially stuff like stocks and weather, and that publishers keep jacking up the price of the paper. Nothing new or controversial.
The controversy should be about the idiotic response to the column by journalists, which consists almost entirely of variations on a theme: “You’re a traitor to the industry because if you don’t buy the print product we’ll go out of business!!!!!”
My answer to them is: “If you don’t start listening to people like Steve Outing (you know, your customers) you’re going to go out of business!!!!!!”
It’s more of the raw arrogance that newspaper execs show every day. Slash your product and charge more for it. Reach fewer and fewer customers at a time when your advertisers have countless new opportunities and respond by raising ad rates. And when your customers complain, bully and threaten them. Call them stupid and ungrateful.
For years I heard fellow editors complain that their own journalists didn’t read or subscribe to the paper. Some wanted to mandate that employees buy the paper. Not once did I hear one say “If our own employees, people who love journalism, aren’t clamoring for our product, how can we expect customers to?”
Ultimately, newspapers rank right up there with the oil and auto industries in their utter contempt for their customers. “This is the product we want to produce, and you better damned well buy it!” is the customer service creed of the industry.
For those of us who love newspapers, it’s time to stop being angry at the Steve Outings of the world. We need to turn our anger at the people attacking him: the brutally stupid editors and publishers who are creating and exacerbating the crisis that threatens the industry.
