I went to an interview recently for an online journalism position. This was actually the third interview, and I was meeting the top brass, so to speak. Then, it happened. I was asked about my blog.

More specifically, I was asked what I was writing lately, since I finished up my full-time commitments elsewhere. I talked a little about the freelance work and my clients, and thought I had handled the question well. My tech-savvy interviewer, however, looked at me and said:

Well, with the explosion of the internet, the definition of what constitutes publishing has changed. There’s nothing stopping you from writing every day. Do you have a blog or anything like that?

Well, colour me surprised. I honestly thought this would never come up in an actual real-world physical interview. I explained that yes, I did, though it had recently come through a period of not being updated. I had, in fact, just finished redesigning the blog from scratch, and would be looking to write a lot more from here on out. That didn’t impress.

I missed out on the position in the end, and I doubt a blog or lack thereof was the deciding factor. I’m just surprised that the interviewer in question brought it up. And I missed an opportunity there to talk about the highly interesting, regularly updated home of my daily writing. Food for thought, folks.

(I was also asked this question about ten times yesterday at a “creatives” discussion forum, but that’s less surprising).

Posted by Dave Molloy in •Business •Journalism •Tech
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Is it just me, or do newspapers consistently fail to tell us why they’re important? All the advertising I see these days (that isn’t just a quick plug about a free DVD in tomorrow’s paper) seems to emphasise the choice and diversity available to the reader. Surely it’s time for struggling papers to emphasise the core value they offer instead?

The Sunday Times is “for all you are” and has some (admittedly great) ads like this one featuring a paperboy emphasising the diversity of their content. But with this form of publishing in direct competition with the infinitely diverse web browser, surely there’s more sense in talking about their extensive resources and (supposed) impartiality?

I recently came across this wonderful old advert for the Guardian which tells me it’s an independent newspaper with the resources to get to the truth that might not be easy to find. And it’s so much more effective than anything I’ve seen recently.

Does anyone know of any recent campaigns that remind the public of these kind of values?

Posted by Dave Molloy in •Business •Journalism
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There’s a notion amongst journos who are good at what they do that every prospective reporter should be born with some sort of heaven-sent ability to write a story in perfect inverted pyramid form. Baloney. As anyone who’s spent time as a section editor for a college paper knows, first-year students getting stuck in to writing for the first time need to be shown the ropes.

Not every university that has a college paper has a journalism course or school of media. Mine didn’t, but I was lucky enough to be educated by a smart and savvy team in a student paper which has been around for over 50 years. For those less fortunate, there’s plenty of material out there to teach those who need to teach themselves. Whether you’re an incoming news editor who needs to train reporters for the first time, or someone who has inherited the Editor’s position and wants to brush up on some skills, these are some resources which have helped me out over the years.

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I was asked today if I’d consider subscribing to The Times (of London) now that they’ve moved behind a paywall. My answer was no. In a similar vein, I completed The Guardian‘s iPhone app customer survey, in which many of the questions probed the app user’s willingness to pay for a subscription model. I gave them an ample response (which they probably didn’t want) explaining why I felt they needed an international approach to their strategy.

In short, these news organisation produce some brilliant content for international customers, but all too often it’s buried underneath masses of content that interest only an audience in the UK . Unlike many of my Trinity College classmates, I don’t particularly care about the minutiae of number 10, but rather want my British politics painted in the same broad strokes with which I observe other global powers. Equally (and The Times is particularly bad at this) I don’t want my otherwise enjoyable features reading to be peppered with allusions to “the great British insert-topic-here.” It’s almost as if a sub-editor comes along and looks at each piece, and saying “ah, we’ve missed an opportunity to insert a reference about fish and chips at Cornwall”, inserts some edits.

Online media represents an opportunity for the very best media companies to offer their non-local content to a global audience. I’d pay for the Guardian’s columnists or The Times’ internationally-relevant investigative work. But I won’t pay for the privilege of hunting through localised content to do so. These companies need to provide alternate international sites and applications that prioritise content in different ways. Then, maybe I’ll feel that as an Irish man, I can justify the expense.

Posted by Dave Molloy in •Business •Journalism
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