Panelists at the "Future of Media" event hosted by DigitalJournal.com in Toronto Wednesday, Sept. 07, 2010 at the Drake Hotel discuss where print and online media is headed. The Panel included (from left to right), Anjali Kapoor, The Globe and Mail's Managing Editor, Digital, David Skok, Senior Producer of Online Content for Global News, Elmer Sotto, Head of Growth for Facebook Canada, digital marketing and social media strategist Mark Evans, and Kunal Gupta, CEO of Polar Mobile.The Globe and Mail
Five of Canada's brightest digital news minds gathered for a discussion on the future of media Wednesday in Toronto, but by the end of the night the jury was still out on exactly where the industry is headed.
The panel, assembled by online news outlet DigitalJournal.com and presented at the Drake Hotel, included executives from Facebook, Global News, Polar Mobile and The Globe and Mail. Panelists included Elmer Sotto, the head of growth at Facebook Canada; David Skok, head of digital content at Global News; digital marketing and social media strategist Mark Evans, principal of ME Consulting; Kunal Gupta, chief executive officer of Polar Mobile; and The Globe and Mail's Managing Editor, Digital, Anjali Kapoor.
The closest the panelists came to an agreement was during a discussion on news organizations' limited resources. On this front, the five speakers stressed the importance of relying on and learning from digital startups that are popping up everywhere.
"News organizations shouldn't be building everything," Ms. Kapoor said, "They should be partnering."
She did acknowledge that it can be hard to know which companies are worth the attention because so many fizzle out quickly, but those that stick around have it in their best interest to help media companies because there's so much room for growth in news. More importantly, these firms allow news organizations to focus on what they do best: create content.
Focusing on journalism's bread and butter may just be the best course of action for media companies, Mr. Evans said. "Newspapers are struggling to find an economic model that works," but "good content will drive revenue, will drive readership."
Startups aren't the only firms that can help. Facebook, for instance, is trying its best to assist news organizations. And Mr. Sotto says it makes sense for them to do so. While media companies specialize in content, Facebook creates absolutely none, and that allows the firm to focus on distribution.
Facebook can be particularly helpful with user comments, which in some cases have turned into personal rants that foster little discussion on most news websites. Yet when comments are posted directly to Facebook pages, users are unlikely to say something silly. If they do, Mr. Skok said they risk the chance of being mocked by people they know.
"If you allow someone to be who they truly are, they are more thoughtful," Mr. Sotto said.
However, there were some worries about Facebook's presence in the news sphere. For instance, if users click on links that show up in their news feeds, which are limited to friends they are likely to agree with, are they really expanding their point of view?
"You basically pick what you want to see rather than getting a broad spectrum," Mr. Evans said.
He also worries about the growing number of referrals from Facebook. Should users start depending on their own news feed for real news, they have less reason to visit news organizations' home pages. In the long-run, that means fewer web impressions for the media outlets, which form the basis of web advertising.
Ms. Kapoor did not agree. "What's the other solution for reaching a larger audience?" she asked. "Media organizations can't stay closed."
Mobile usage was also a big point of discussion.
"I don't think media companies realize the [mobile]growth they'll experience in the next 12 to 18 months," Mr. Gupta said. He would know: his company advises some of the biggest news outlets on mobile usage south of the border.
Yet there was hesitation about fully investing in mobile. "We've all been waiting for the mobile advertising to come... Is it ever going to happen?" Mr. Evans asked.
"Is mobile ever going to be more than grab and go?" he added, noting that online advertising is still pulling in much less revenue than its print counterpart, and mobile screens only shrink the advertising space. "I'd be very worried if I was pouring money into mobile content these days."
As for the future of media advertising in general, the panel was split. Some, like Mr. Gupta, believe online and mobile advertising is only just starting to take off and predicted that things will drastically change in the near future.
"What's missing today and won't be in 12 months is infrastructure," Mr. Gupta said. For instance, right now news organizations don't offer ways to pay for one story or feature, which would allow readers to pick and choose the news they are willing to pay for.
Of course, a digital media discussion would be incomplete without mentioning the iPad. Asked if he thinks news outlets should focus on Apple's tablet, Mr. Gupta strongly voiced his opinion against jumping on the bandwagon. Not only is it a closed operating system, he said, but Steve Jobs is so protective of his products that he won't let media companies see them before they are released, even though these products are supposed to help save the industry.
Still, news organizations feel compelled to play with the iPad, and The Globe and Mail has developed not one but two apps. Ms. Kapoor said there's no harm in trying anything in this day and age.
"Media companies need to be experimental," she said.