2days Class: Paid Content vs. Free Content
via Wall Street Journal | GothamPR.com
The Wall Street Journal has reported the head of the Federal Trade Commission will study whether government should aid struggling news organizations, which are suffering from a collapse in advertising revenues as the internet upends their centuries-old business model.
News Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch said at the FTC workshop that media companies need to do a better job of convincing consumers that high-quality journalism isn’t free. Mr. Murdoch created a buzz last month by saying that News Corp. may block Google Inc. from searching its news sites. He didn’t mention the company by name Tuesday, but criticized Internet sites that profit from reusing news articles published by others without bearing the costs.
Unfortunately for him, Arianna Huffington, editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post, followed Mr. Murdoch and blasted his criticism of Internet sites like hers that collect and link to news content from other providers. Ms. Huffington said her popular Web site drives a great deal of online traffic to The Wall Street Journal.
Federal and state officials this year have explored how the government might play a role in helping ease the financial travails of news organizations. Sen. Benjamin Cardin (D., Md.) this spring proposed a bill that would allow newspapers to operate as tax-exempt institutions. Congress has held several hearings about the financial challenges facing the industry.
