Covid’s Media and Journalism Casualties
Posted on Tuesday, December 29, 2020 at 9:35 PM
In the news: Remembering media and journalism workers who have died
of Covid-19.
Last spring, Kristen Hare of Poynter.org began
tracking people in the media and journalism industry who have died of
the coronavirus. This week, she reflects upon the early days of her
project: “I had this idea back in the spring to collect the names of the
few journalists who died from the coronavirus and have them inscribed on
a brick in Poynter’s courtyard.... After 10 months collecting the obits
of journalists who’ve died because of the coronavirus, I’m certain that
the courtyard couldn’t begin to hold all their names.”
The
media industry has lost some greats during the pandemic -- more than 500
journalists in 57 countries, according to the nonprofit Press Emblem
Campaign. “It shows how devastating the coronavirus has been everywhere:
newspaper owners, cameramen, broadcast pioneers, writers, retirees,
young parents,” says Hare. “Many of them -- I don’t have a number -- got
sick while informing their communities about the pandemic.”
Read
more here, and see
Hare’s collection of media obituaries here.
Also
Notable
Remote Reporting: A Look Ahead
In a
recent Editor & Publisher interview, Rice University Thresher
co-editor-in-chief Ivanka Perez and Duluth News Tribune executive
editor Rick Lubbers discuss the future of reporting in a remote work
world. “The switch to remote work may be accelerating the transition
from print to online-only journalism,” says Perez. “In a normal year,
Thresher staffers would spend every Monday evening in our office.... As
we embrace the conveniences of a more flexible, remote workroom, we must
also find a way to re-incorporate a team mindset into the way our
staffers operate.”
It’s a challenge to collaborate in
today’s work-from-home reality, Lubbers tells Editor & Publisher:
“Editors can no longer drop by a reporter’s desk for a quick chat about
how a story is shaping up.... Any type of newsroom collaboration
requires more heavy lifting to get it off the ground.” He acknowledges
that even when the pandemic ends and people begin to return to their
offices, some workers will choose to continue working remotely, creating
a hybrid workforce of in-person and remote staffers.
Read more here.
Magazines
That Cut Issues This Year
Kathryn Hopkins of WWD.com recently
rounded up the magazines that cut the number of print issues in 2020.
Summing up the state of things, she reports: “In an analysis of 45
U.S.-based titles, WWD found that 26, or 58 percent, had a lower print
frequency this year compared to 2019; two have ceased print operations
for good and another is on hiatus with print under review. Only two
publications increased frequency.” Hearst in particular cut print
frequency for several prominent titles including Elle, Cosmopolitan,
and Town & Country, she says. (Not all of these changes are
permanent.) However, of the major publishers, Hearst also cut the fewest
staffers during the pandemic. Read the full piece here.
News
Brands Exploring Subscription Bundle Partnerships
Publishers
are finding new partners to create subscription bundles with wider
appeal. Kayleigh Barber of Digiday.com says that these publishers “are
turning to financial and educational institutions and non-publisher
brands ... to bring in subscribers that publications have identified as
crossover target audiences beyond their traditional reach.” Business
Insider has partnered up with American Express and Wall Street
Journal has partnered with Standard Chartered bank, to cite a few of
Barber’s examples. Business Insider, she reports, “started
offering American Express credit card holders free six- or 12-month
trials to the digital publication.” Read more here.
The
Disappearing Glossy Masthead
The masthead has long been a
staple part of a glossy magazine issue, but that may be changing.
Kathryn Hopkins of WWD.com examines this shift in a recent piece. In
many cases, the masthead winds up on the cutting room floor in favor of
editorial content or advertiser placements. What’s more, with many
magazines existing on multiple platforms, the masthead has inflated well
beyond the confines of a single page. Some magazines include their
mastheads online, but Hopkins notes that this makes it difficult to link
specific editors and staffers to specific issues. But Syracuse
University media professor Aileen Gallagher tells Hopkins that the
masthead simply may not carry the weight it once did. She says, “‘The
association of the editor with the brand is not as strong. Can people
name a magazine editor now besides Anna Wintour?’” Read more here.
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