All journalists should operate like entrepreneurs

America is a start-up nation. Look for the bleeding edge of advancement in just about any endeavor, and you will find a bunch of people operating on no sleep, hunched over computers or their phones, banging out code, copy, or a business plan, living in a distinct lack of luxury, confident that they will someday see the fruits of their labor... and loving it. Sounds a whole lot like the life of a journalist, no?

I recently attended the SXSW V2V conference in Las Vegas. It is an event focusing on startups, full of the energy and flavor of the well knowns SXSW Interactive/Film/Music festivals in Austin, TX. (I'm a fan, and hopefully a future attender, of both events.) I picked up one consistent message during the panels I attended: people in a startup need to do more for themselves, and not put EVERYTHING into the startup. Here is some of the specific advice I heard.

• Get enough sleep. Obviously.
• Be selfish. Do something for yourself every day. One entrepreneur said after he wakes up and eats breakfast, he spends 30 minutes doing something for himself that has nothing to do with his company.
• Exercise. As in, don't sacrifice your body for your business.
• Be passionate about what you do. Otherwise, why do it?
• Constantly seek advice. Find a pal you can talk to about your stuff. Find a mentor.
• Focus on the achievable. Instead of looking at one huge insurmountable goal, cut it up into smaller, achievable goals.

Setting a new Bar for Journalism

Bars and journalism have a stronger link than the obvious one. That's the lesson from watching a marathon of "Bar Rescue" on SpikeTV on Sunday.

For those who don't know, "Bar Rescue" is a program where bar industry expert Jon Taffer visits a troubled bar and over five days "rescues" the place. Most of the issues that the bars face are similar to issues that many newsrooms face (and I'll dare say, most workplaces in general face.)

• Don't ignore the customer. Every episode of "Bar Rescue" starts with covert surveillance from Jon's SUV in the bar parking lot, where Taffer and his experts observe the bar through hidden cameras. Inevitably, the customer service is poor, the drinks are mixed badly, and the food is not properly prepared. No mater the medium, journalism needs to be presented in the form that the consumer wants. More and more, consumers want a form depending on their needs at that time: on the go, they want a Twitter update on that breaking story; when they're back home, they'll take out the tablet for the long-read on that topic, and maybe turn on the television to catch a better look at that compelling video.
• Fix the signs. The evaluation of the bar starts with the parking lot, and issues like lighting, signage, and ambiance. People will not see the inside of a bar that is not appealing from the outside. The lessons for journalism are obvious: television needs appealing people, on bright and well-designed sets. Newspapers and websites need eye-catching design.  
• Serve the customers, not for yourself. On "Bar Rescue," I saw a disturbing number of owners or managers who would consumer alcohol to the point of intoxication, or give away drinks, or hit on customers. All are examples of putting yourself ahead of the customer experience (and, ahead of the business.) In television journalism, this sort of behavior happens in idle banter, especially in the form of "station insider" or "industry insider" jokes that the viewers don't get. 
• Fun is not your priority. Is a strong cousin. When an owner, manager, or employee is focused on having fun, they cannot focus on their duties, to the detriment of the rest of the operation.
• Meet the new boss. After scoping the place out, Taffer reveals himself to the owner and the employees, and notifies them that "things will be changing" because he is, in effect, the new boss for the next five days. Before he even knows what all of the problems are, Taffer tells everyone that expectations will be raised, and those who cannot keep up will be out of work. This may seem harsh, but it is part of a pathway to success: tell the employees what is expected of them, train them to reach those expectations, measure their work to see if they meed those expectations, and then hold them accountable if they don't measure up.
• Check the taps, check the traps. Before he can figure out what to fix, Taffer has to figure out what's broken. He tours the entire establishment, paying close attention to the two money centers: the bar and the kitchen. Taffer's inspection starts with cleanliness, which always comes up short. There's always filth in the beer taps, and years of caked on grease in the grease traps.
• Fix the managers. Employee training starts with making sure the managers know it is their fault the employees are not measuring up. Managing starts with setting expectations. Many of the owners or managers have lost their passion, often due to a personal tragedy. Taffer helps them work through it. Lesson: manager, manage yourself first.
• Start with a clean glass. You'd be amazed at the number of bars using dirty glasses. You'd also be amazed at the filthy condition of most newsrooms. I worked at a place where the owner forbade eating at your desk, to the the point of threatening and actually firing people for it. Many people thought it was goofy, most (even the senior management) broke the rule, but I thought it was a good rule. No one likes working in filth, so don't let it get filthy in the first place if you can avoid it.
• You can't mix drinks until you can pour. Employee training on "Bar Rescue" usually starts with teaching bartenders how to pour properly. It is so basic, and so often ignored. All the fancy "Snowfall"-style multi-media on your website or live-shot-o-rama in your holographic projector filled "Disaster Monitor Room" broadcast center don't make a lick of difference if you don't verify your quotes, ask good questions, and spell everything correctly.  
• Small mistakes add up to big dollars. At some point, Taffer will put out the BevIntel report. By weighing all the bottles in the bar, then weighing them after last call, and comparing to the receipts, Taffer can figure out just how many drinks the bartenders are giving away, either through straight free drinks or "over-pouring." The figures are staggering: thousands of dollars in a night. Journalists think of it this way: breaking the basic rules of journalism costs money. If journalists mess up their "pours," you can make mistakes, which damage your credibility, and can lead to lawsuits.
• Don't forget the kitchen. A few of the bars did not have a kitchen, or did not pay it much mind. Taffer says it is a crucial revenue center. People who eat will order more drinks, stay longer, pay more money. The lesson for journalism: look for secondary revenue streams. 
• Have unique drinks and dishes. Taffer's experts devise new drinks and dishes for the bars, usually tied to the bar's theme or brand. The lesson for journalism is to know the brand and execute. An investigative station probably shouldn't spend too much (any) time on Miley Cyrus twerking at the VMAs, no matter how many eyeballs that may attract short-term. A community newspaper should focus on what the local members of congress are doing, but probably not spend a lot of time on every political machination going on in Washington, DC. 
• Focus on the profit. Smart bars don't spend a lot of time making drinks and dishes with small profit margins. They maybe even cut them from the menu. I saw one episode about a bar with a drag show. When the drag show started, drink sales stopped. So, the drag show had to change.  
• You find out a lot during the stress test. Taffer puts each bar through a "stress test," pulling in a bigger-than-usual crowd to put the pressure on everyone. And they usually can't handle the stress. Drinks are made poorly. Food gets to customers slowly. This really highlights the weak points, which are really opportunities for improvement. While most journalism outfits can not (would not) create a "stress test" situation, they happen on their own when either one really big story breaks, or many significant stories break at the same time. After things start to calm, take the time to figure out where your "opportunities for improvement" are.
• Renovate. After the stress test, Tapper kicks everyone out for three days to redesign the bar, inside and out. Most journalism outfits are not going to do a top to bottom renovation all that often, but there are ongoing tweaks. Television stations will update the set or the graphics (or the anchors.) Newspapers might tweak the masthead, or try a few new layout techniques. Websites will have periodic redesigns. The lesson is not to be afraid of the change.
• Celebrate the change. There's a scene in every episode of "Bar Rescue" where Taffer reveals the brand new look to the bar, and the employees' reaction. Usually, they're excited. Sometimes, they are upset about the change. When a bar's history is truly important, it will either survive the change, or will at least be celebrated in the redesign. The employees that embrace the change are the ones who are shown succeeding when the renovated bar receives the first patrons. The lessons for journalists are obvious. Too much is changing in the industry for you to wish for the way things used to be, but we also cannot abandon it entirely. 

All News is Local

"All News is Local" is one of those cliches that just happens to be true. On Thursday, August 22nd, Rachel Maddow took her show to Elizabeth City, North Carolina. For a few days now, Maddow has been showing how the local election board there is just one cog in the North Carolina Republican campaign to restrict access to voting. In her typical way, she shows just how wrong-headed this is, from a common sense perspective, from a government policy/spending perspective, and from the perspective of anyone who believes in democracy. The HuffPo did a nice write-up here.

Usually, the networks and cable-nets send their anchors out for the big, splashy disaster, trial, or crime story that will evolve over days. This is the first time I've seen one deploy for what is, essentially, a process story about a process that is "over." The vote already took place; Maddow played the YouTube video of the meeting.

The other interesting thing here is that Maddow heaped praise on the newspaper industry. It is no new thing for television people to interview newspaper people about stories: in some sad way, that substitutes when television doesn't bother to assign one of its own journalists to a story. Maddow not only interviewed that local newspaper journalist in North Carolina, but she asked, pleaded her viewers to support "local journalism" by subscribing to newspapers and paying to access internet paywalls. (You can bet you won't see the anchors on the broadcast networks pitching local newspapers over the air supplied by local television stations with local newsrooms.)

The Race to Innovate in the Digital Media Age

Move, or get left behind. That seems to be the message, and the fear, in the digital media age. The race is on to own "mobile," even though no one has figured out how to own "social" or "online" before it, much less how to make a profit off of any of these disruptive technologies. So, I thought I might do a thought experiment, and track the various "disruptive" events in journalism (fact-based storytelling) through time.

1. Gestural Language
Probably the first form of communication. It also confirms to one human that there is an existence beyond their own brain. Gestures depend on a set of objects in the immediate vicinity ("I want that thing I'm pointing at") or a set of actions that correspond to known and accepted activities (You know I want food, because I'm pinching my fingers together and putting them in my mouth, the "I want food" sign.) Storytelling was usually simple and factual; fictional storytelling was restricted to lying. This was usually used between individuals: there was not much point in gesturing a crowd of hundreds that you want the piece of meat, when you just want Og to pass it over.

2. Spoken/Sung Language
Perhaps the biggest disruption for humanity was when we stopped relying on simple gestures to communicate, and learned to communicate through spoken language and song. This also opened up the potential topics for communication.  Spoken language is a disruptive technology that allowed us to communicate about concepts, not just objects. Applies to both factual and fictional storytelling. This was more appropriate for communication from one person to a large group.

3.) Drawings/Images - Storage
Starting with cave drawings, humanity was no longer dependent on that "set of objects in the immediate vicinity"to communicate (See Spoken Language). Drawings also disrupted time: the messages were "sent" at a specific time, but would last as long as the drawing lasted. Again, both factual (historical) and fictional (mythological) storytelling was possible. Communication from one or many to one or many.

With those three in place, the first "multimedia" presentation would look something like the storytelling scene from "Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome," which itself looks a bit like primitive theatre.

So, with those three innovations, humanity learned to communicate through visual and aural methods. Both methods are adaptable to both fact and fiction, and are suitable for messages from one or many, to one or many. In most cases, the "user filter" is simply to listen/observe or chose not to listen/observe. In the computer era (and later), you have more control over the types of content you chose to expose yourself to. In the mobile era, you can chose to only expose yourself to content that is or is about places nearby.

(We have also learned to communicate through the other five "traditional" senses: for example, many chefs think of a meal, or even a single dish, as a story told through taste and smell. Anyone who has experienced traditional (mostly non-Western) music knows it as much an experience in feeling the percussive beats as it is about the sound; same with an arena concert. For the most part, though, we will focus the rest of this article on communication through visual and auditory means.)

I believe that all subsequent innovations in storytelling were either improvements to efficency, storage, profit-making, or a combination of previous storytelling methods.

4. Text (Written Language) - Storage
On a very basic level, written language is a symbolic representation of gestures, spoken words, or drawings. At every step there is something "lost in translation," as there is something intrinsic about each of the three "base means" of communication that are lost when they are converted to written language. Written language in some eastern/Asian locations is a broad, but finite, set of symbols. In Western locations (and some Eastern) locations, written language consists of a small (relative to Western pictographic languages) number of units (letters) combined into a theoretically infinite number of larger units (words) which are then combined into larger units of meaning (sentences.)

5. Letters & Records
Written language led to written records, and to letters. I think of records as "thoughts to be used later," and letters as "thoughts to be used by someone else, at a different time and place." One-to-one communication.

6. Signs
One-to-many communication through text. Will lead to billboards, handbills, etc.

7. Monks/Painters Apprentices
Hand duplication of the Bible spread the word, and was the start of a long record of The Bible as the most "published" set of information in all time. Hand-crafted bibles included intricate artwork that was, in some sense, multimedia. Painters Apprentices often duplicated paintings, accomplishing a primitive "mass production."

8. Printing Press - Advertising
Mechanical reproduction replaces monks and painters apprentices. (Not immediately, but eventually.) This leads to commerce: books in the one-to-many communication area, newspapers in the many-to-many area. Note that newspapers eventually developed "in-line advertising," reducing the cost of the product to the consumer and replacing it with a charge to the ad-placer. In general, advertising penetrates the many-to-many side quite easily, and penetrates the one-to-many in more subtle ways.

9. Photography/Film - Storage
Now you don't have to have any artistic skill to capture an image, or to tell a story with an image. Photography lead to film, which is a transformative storytelling technology. Both are reproducible, one-to-many storytelling media. When pictures and films are sold, they are not normally mixed with advertising (there is no ad in the middle of your photo, and the film doesn't stop for an advertisement in the middle (we had to wait for television for that innovation.))

10. Telegraph
After text was converted to Morse Code's dashes and dots, allowed the transmission of text over long distances. In many ways, the spiritual ancestor of telephony and the internet. One-to-one or one-to-many, not ad supported.

11. Audio Recording
Storage of spoken/sung storytelling. One-to-one or one-to-many, not ad supported.

12. Radio
The long-distance transmission of spoken/sung storytelling. One-to-many, generally ad supported. (U.S. law forbids "pay to play," so radio broadcasters make money by selling advertising. Satellite radio is subscription based, and generally has no advertising, and uses that fact as a selling point.)

13. Telephone
Spoken/Sung storytelling over long distances. One-to-one (generally), not ad supported.

14. Television
Visual and spoken/sung storytelling over great distances. One-to-many communication. Ad supported.

15. Computer
Visual, spoken/sung storytelling over great distances. Communication was generally one-to-many (the program/presentation writer/coder communicates a story to many. Think about the video game author communicating with the players. The coder to the people experiencing the program.) Not ad supported.

16. Internet
Visual, spoken/sung storytelling over great distances. Includes one-to-one, one-to-many, and many-to-many communication. In addition to subscriptions and advertising, internet content providers have figured out how to make money selling data about their users. Varying degrees of ad support depending on the specific method of communication. Let's break them down:

• Email: one-to-one or one-to-many text-based communication. (While you can now attach or embed a picture or audio file in an email, I contend these are not intrinsic to email). At origin, email was free or paid for by subscribers to connect to an internet service provider. (What about Gmail and its ads? I contend the ads are there so Google doesn't charge you for the interface that makes Gmail work: the skeleton email protocol is still free/subscription based.
• Bulletin Boards: many-to-many text-based communication. Supported by a combination of subscription fees and in-line advertising.
• Websites/HTML/CSS: one-to-many and many-to-many text, visual, audio storytelling. While some are free, most are supported by ads. A small but growing number are supported by subscription fees.

17. Portable Computing - Smart Phones/Tablets

This era marks an interesting reversal in trends. Innovation in the "computer" era was based on reduction in size and an increase in computing power. Each generation of computer is smaller than the previous one, but come with more memory and more computing power. Computer programs are able to accomplish more and more different tasks with each version. Smart phones started as computers that were able to run one program at a time, with a small screen. As smart phones evolve, they are actually becoming bigger, evolving into tablets. While each generation of smart phone/tablet does have more memory and more processing power, the apps they run are often slimmed-down versions of analogous programs for desktop computers, with inputs and outputs that are smaller. For example:

• Texting/SMS: not just stripped down email, this is a personal telegraph.
• Location based apps: building on the power of GPS, with location as a filter.
• Sensor-based apps: personal movement, temperature, direction, environment as input.
• Phone: at first, the apps were an add-on to the phone. After evolution, tablets no longer have a phone capability.
• Video/Photo: visual input in a way that is clumsy with a desktop machine.

Distance has been overcome for data transmission, and now a device that can handle any story-telling paradigm is portable. The latest area for innovation appears to be interaction based on the environment of the user, both the physical location (relative to other physical locations) and the current environmental conditions (temperature, barometric pressure, geographic orientation (what direction are you pointing?), ambient sound, etc.) Innovators will figure out new ways to combine old storytelling paradigms with environmental sensor inputs.