Brokaw: Washington Post Print Paper 'Probably' Dead in 10 Years

Business & Media Institute ^ | 11/20/2007 | Jeff Poor

[3AngelaD]

hen Tom Brokaw, an old-time mainstream media figure in his own right, says he thinks print newspapers won’t be around in 10 years, that’s probably not a good sign for the industry. The former NBC “Nightly News” anchor appeared at the Sixth & I Synagogue in Washington, D.C. on November 19 to promote his new book..Brokaw said he envisioned a major newspaper going completely digital in 10 years.

“I was at The Washington Post earlier today,” Brokaw said. “And in the lobby they’ve got a wonderful graphic describing how the printing press works and where it is … 75,000 copies an hour it can turn out. Its last run is at 2:15 in the morning and [has] an automatic paper roll that comes when they run out of paper and the ink is recharge and I looked at all that and I thought – ‘Ten years from now, will it be here?’

" I don’t know. Probably … if you would do a hardcore analysis – probably not. It’ll be probably digital 10 years from now.”

Brokaw referred to how the younger generations rely solely on digital forms media to get their information.

“You talk to them about the tactile experience at the newspaper and they look at you, and it’s like ‘Man, what planet were you born on?’” Brokaw quipped.

However, Brokaw said there will still be a demand for journalists to interpret information.

“There will never not be a need for professional people to take complicated information, put it into a form that viewers and readers will need to know and want to understand,” he said.

According to Editor & Publisher, daily circulation at The Washington Post was down 3.2 percent to 635,087 and Sunday was down 3.9 percent to 894,428 for the six-month period ending September 2007.

[3AngelaD]

Insert picture of Edvard Munch's "The Scream" here.

[Rummyfan]

“There will never not be a need for professional people to take complicated information, put it into a form that viewers and readers will need to know and want to understand,” he said.

Geez! When are they going to start doing that?

[Zakeet]

The ComPost's credibility has been dead for decades.

[ConorMacNessa]

“There will never not be a need for professional people to take complicated information, put it into a form that viewers and readers will need to know and want to understand,” he said.

Patronizing SOB.

[heywoodubuzzoff]

Ten years! That is depressing. I have ten months in the office pool.

[freespirited]

Washington Post Print Paper 'Probably' Dead in 10 Years

Party at my house when it happens!

[Berlin_Freeper]

...they look at you, and it’s like ‘Man, what planet were you born on?’” Brokaw quipped.

That's how I always watch TV.

[A. Morgan]

What did you expect from a NEWSIE doofus, who’s been hawking books lately?

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

“However, Brokaw said there will still be a demand for journalists to interpret information.”

Interpret: = make up, spin, withhold, fabricate, counterfeit, extort.

[exit82]

Tom, will that be before or after the Goracle says the world ends?

[stuartcr]

People said that with the advent of the PC, paperwork would be reduced a lot too. Now it’s so easy to print, that everything has to be printed and copied 100 times.

[mo]

All I want ..and will pay for..is who, what, why, where, when and how. Brokaw’s opinion..nada...

[SF Republican]

there will still be a demand for journalists to interpret information.
No there won’t and no there isn’t

[weegee]

can I get a digital countdown counter to that day to put on my FR profile page???

[meowmeow]

“There will never not be a need for professional people to take complicated information, put it into a form that viewers and readers will need to know and want to understand,” he said.

Because without the newsreaders, how would I ever understand that forest fires, hurricanes, war, AIDS, crime and the flu is all Bush's fault? /hand wringing

[COBOL2Java]

“However, Brokaw said there will still be a demand for journalists to interpret information.”

Huh. Whaddya know? Journalists are supposed to do that? Silly me, I thought that was a commentator's job, not a journalist!

[CDHart]

"Patronizing SOB."

That was my reaction, too.

Carolyn

[COBOL2Java]

"In other news, the Washington Post is still dead."

[CharlesWayneCT]

I believe he is correct. People in general have neither the time nor the training to collect raw information, determine what pieces of information are related and which aren’t, and the ability to do that and put the results in words the average person can understand is still needed today.

News isn’t going out of style because nobody needs it, it’s because they have lost credibility.