The Future of News

No one yet has solved the riddle that will guarantee the future of news: How does an online news outlet offer news that is free, attract a large audience, generate sufficient cashflow to produce original content, and make a profit — all at the same time. MySpace may have come up with the answer, as it moves rapidly to incorporate e-commerce into its pages, and essentially becomes an Internet retailer targeting young audiences, segmented by interest for added value to advertisers.

Wait a minute — since when is MySpace a “news outlet?” Since it began. Many of us hold the myopic view that news is new information about serious, government-oriented issues, that is written by journalists who insist their work is true and objective, and is delivered in a dull, authoritative style. How about instead we think of news simply as “new information about a subject of common interest that is shared within a community.” Any new information. Any subject of common interest. Any community. What’s the news that interests us most? News that most directly affects our lives. Which community most directly affects our lives? Family and friends. Voila! By providing news of family and friends, MySpace is filling the most important space there is in the news business. Still don’t believe MySpace is “news”? Who owns MySpace? Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation. Class dismissed.