Sustainable Revenue Business Plan for Online Journalism Capstone Proposal

[Tim Robertson]

This capstone will assess the probabilities of success of different proposed revenue models for online journalism; and evaluate if the use of cutting-edge Web tools are monetarily worth the time and effort. The capstone will then evaluate the models and Web tools on a journalistic rubric, and finally the capstone will develop a possible business plan for an online local news organization that can sustain operational revenue.

Journalism is in flux. With this change, different ways to approach sustaining revenues have surfaced. Both the online arms of existing news organizations and start-up Web-only companies are trying new techniques of making money online.

My capstone will examine seven news organizations from small to large, from print-first to Web-only. From a top 10 circulation paper (Newsday) to a donation-hungry Web start-up (MinnPost.com), I will look at how these organizations seek a revenue, and find out what is working and what is not.

Social Media

As the Web expands and its users evolve, journalism must evolve with them. Social media is one of the fastest growing parts of the Internet. Some news media are using existing social media to interact with users, and some are developing platforms within their sites to do the same (Syracuse.com). I will investigate the successes, difficulties, benefits and drawbacks of both.

Cutting-Edge Web Tools
The trick to Internet-based reporting is to find the best tool to get a message across and to hold a discussion. There are dozens of free or
low-cost cutting-edge Web tools out there that will stream live video, support a live-blogging discussion and various other tools created through open-source. I will look at the monetary benefit of operating these tools on the Web, and if they bring in user interaction and traffic making the time allotted worthwhile (LoHud.com).

Monetary Benefits
Then I will discuss the pitfalls and benefits of the various business
models, social media ventures, and uses of new Web tools on a
journalistic level. I will research:

• Pay walls with a journalistic hat
  
• The use social media and the grassroots journalism that inherently develops -- and if that harms journalism
  
• Does live video and live chats or blogging are detracting or adding to the journalistic value of a news media organization

Business Plan
Finally, I will bring everything into view and construct a business plan for a new local news site.

• Which revenue model should be used?
  
• Should live video and live blogging be included?
  
• Is an inside social media network worth the cost?
  
• Is it worth it to build a presence on a third-party social media site?
  
• Is there aggregation of national and state news?

Presentation
I will host my capstone at BizofJournalism.ning.com. This is where I will keep this proposal; links to relevant articles; host any video, audio or pictures that will accompany this project.
Other sites I will use are:

• Del.ic.ous - for links to relevant articles
• Tumblr - for my thoughts on certain articles
• YouTube - collection of video recorded interviews
  

The list below are the seven organizations I wish to focus on for my capstone. In bold are the areas I find most compelling and will pay the
most attention to. I also plan to talk with members of the Nieman
Journalism Lab at Harvard University, as well as journalism professors
from other universities, and I hope to bring in opinions of
well-respected industry intellectuals through crowd-sourcing.

Voice of San Diego:
non-profit
donations
major donor to get started
no national news

MinnPost
foundation grants
non-profit
donations
4 major donors to get started

Patch
advertising (but is minimal, so where else does funding come from?)
hyperlocal journalism
community journalism
no national news
Owned by AOL

LoHud.com
Web arm of Journal News (Westchester)
Livestream integration

Syracuse.com
Social networks on site
Web arm of Syracuse Post-Standard
Community sharing/journalism via social network

Bangor Daily News
Small paper in single-paper town
Independently owned
Local advertising
Very limited national news on web

Newsday
Pay wall
Cover It Live blogging for sports
Traffic via national stories (AP)
Minimal to no ads on front page