The following article originally appeared on the Examiner.com website, where you can read more stories.
Social media is changing the world around us. This an accepted fact. However, the Newseum-hosted and YouTube-sponsored AMP Summit 2011 reiterated this truth in a new light. Serial entrepreneur Mark Ecko, former Howard Dean campaign manager Joe Trippi, and former Missouri governor Matt Blunt christened the proceedings with evocative keynote addresses. The speakers augered informative dialogue about a "people-powered" digital revolution, as the event organizer's David All Group website states.
Participants could select one of three tracks - Persuasion, Activation and Engagement - on their yellow brick road to renewed perspective. Peter Cherukuri, a vice president at AOL Huffington Post Media Group, moderated a breakout that addressed in elephant in many newsrooms: What does the future hold? The panel, "The Future of News: Immediate, Social, and Mobile," an Engagement session, tackled the issue with a scalpel.
Prior to the 2008 financial crisis, newsrooms were already cutting staff and struggling to find new ways to monetize their content. More than one speaker intimated a blurring of lines as businesses and non-profit organizations, such as the Red Cross, begin to "function like a news" agency. The resulting double identity raises fundamental questions about journalistic integrity and overlooked stories.
NPR reporter Eyder Peralta alluded to challenges regarding quality of listener-sourced information. While public radio lends itself to crowdsourced news, he recognized "we are still learning" how to vet content. Nevertheless he believes audiences will be able to sort out fact from fiction. "We underestimate the intelligence of the public," Peralta said.
Steve Buttry, social media czar at the Journal Register Company, underscored the looming issue of resources. News outlets must decide how "we can cover this slice and cover it well," Buttry said of story selection.
Monetizing Content
Journalists often follow the money trail toward a perceived antagonist. Appropriately so panelists pointed a finger in the direction of generating revenue as users increasingly prefer easily accessible online news.
Additionally, content is no longer cheap - it is free. The shift has created more competitors, destabilized gatekeepers and forced "old media" companies to spread their waning wealth around the rapidly growing space of online news production. "The tools of publishing are in everyone's hands" Buttry admitted.
Consequently, future attempts to commodify content will rely on funding from multifarious sources. This could entail niched advertising schemes that hone in on micro payments through paid sites or even online games.
News outlets will continue to pivot in an increasing digital age but users need not worry about missing the most important stories. "If it's important, it will find it's way to you," Cherukuri reassured.
Thankfully, the AMP Summit, an acronym for Activism, Media, and Policy, gave participants more than an excuse to attend yet another tech conference. Rather, the summit created a space for emerging and recognized leaders that to discuss burgeoning issues in their galaxy of the digital universe. But, perhaps more immediately, it served as a great way to wind up as weary practitioners enter the final quarter of 2011.
Writer's note: I would like to acknowledge fantastically creative and passionate team at the David All Group. I was thoroughly impressed with their unmatched organization, especially that of Laura Bolos, during a very busy day.
