News Consortiums Battle Traditional Papers
Recent startups of online news consortiums are hoping their ability to present “serious journalism” will win the hearts and minds of today’s readers of local newspapers, including Tribune Company’s Chicago Tribune and The Los Angeles Times.
No. 1, it’s a great way to put back to work at least a few of the thousands of journalists who have been displaced by traditional media over the last two years. And No. 2, the consortiums provide yet another alternative for an audience that is increasingly digital-minded.
It doesn’t hurt that animosity exists between many of the new startups and their old bosses. One of the best examples is found right in Tribune’s own backyard, Chicago, where former Los Angeles Times editor James O’Shea is leading the new Chicago News Cooperative. O’Shea famously clashed with Sam Zell and the rest of Tribune’s management over staffing and budget cuts after Zell took over the company in 2007. Last week, his consortium began producing two full pages of local news for the new Chicago edition of the New York Times.
O’Shea was downsized from his editor’s role at The Los Angeles Times in early 2008, famously leaving behind a lengthy diatribe/email for his fellow compatriots.
The story of O’Shea’s departure, and that of hundreds of Tribuners, can be found in my new book, “Money Talks, Bullsh*t Walks, Inside the Contrarian Mind of Billionaire Mogul Sam Zell,” to be published by Portfolio later this year.
For more on the rise of news consortiums, check out this story in today’s New York Times (subscription may be required).
