Old-school "convergence" again? Why bother?
I'm trying hard to understand why the Star Tribune in Minneapolis is bothering to build an in-house TV studio. They're planning to call it StribTV, and it appears that reporters will cover topics already in the newspaper for quick standups and for other longer videos. Content will be available on-demand.
I haven't seen a real newspaper-to-streaming-newscast success story yet, at least not beyond the Studio55 project at the Naples Daily News, which basically looks and feels like a regular television morning news broadcast and not necessarily an interactive web video experience. There are individual examples of how to make compelling video - David Pogue at the Times, Dana Milbank at the Post - but I'm wondering what will make StribTV stand out.
In a memo to her staff, Editor Nancy Barns asked for help:
Some of you will (very soon) be tapped to produce content for Strib TV; certain content is a natural fit. However, we also will need people to host the shows, and read our newscast. If you think you have a voice and or a presence on camera, here's your chance to shine. We haven't determined exactly how we are going to audition people, but we are asking for names of people who would be interested. This is open to anyone in the newsroom, or in the company. Email Will Tacy or Cory Powell if you are interested.
I'm all for getting in the sandbox. I firmly believe that every journalist should play with all the digital media available and that they should feel empowered to take advantage of new publishing tools.
But auditioning print folks for on-camera reporter spots? Here's another example of adapting technology - in this case, video distribution via the web - but not adjusting personnel to meet the new challenges of your project. Why not find folks who've produced video for the web and use them? The Minneapolis/ St. Paul area is gigantic - surely there are some talented multimedia people who understand the nature of digital video? If StribTV must be staffed by reporters in the newsroom, then they're going to need lots of training. And I'm not talking about how to operate a camera or even how to make your voice sound great on camera.
It's not about reading the newscast or trying to fill space with commentary. It's about creating content that makes sense on the web and not duplicating what's already being done by your local network affiliate. That takes real creativity. And ultimately, it means approaching the web with a digital perspective first, not the perspective of a print journalist who's trying to play catchup.
My hope is that StribTV succeeds and sets a new example for other print-based publications to follow. But it doesn't sound promising.
