Gannett Blog: Econ 101: To preserve Gannett Blog after Dec. 31, I begin testing journalism’s new business model

Posted on 14 October, 2008 by Martin Stabe

Jim Hopkins: "I'm now starting the time clock on an experiment illustrating the brutal economics of online journalism. Based on the long odds, I'll probably fail -- pushing Gannett Blog closer to its demise, and showing on a micro level why Gannett's survival is so threatened. I'm looking for ways to earn about $24,000 a year from several sources to supplement my income, now that USA Today's severance checks are ending. A logical place to start: this blog..."

Monday Note: The economics of moving from print to online: lose one hundred, get back eight

Posted on 29 September, 2008 by Martin Stabe

"Let’s kill a myth. The dream of a compact newsroom, able to output a high-intensity general news website doesn’t fly. Numbers simply don’t add up. And here is why. "

Editor & Publisher: How Well Do You REALLY Know The Newspaper Industry? Take Economist Robert Picard’s Test

Posted on 2 August, 2008 by Martin Stabe

"Robert G. Picard, the well-known media economist, has developed a test about the economic and financial conditions of U.S. newspapers that he gave to attendees at a recent industry conference."

The New Yorker: Dept. of Currency: Penny Dreadful

Posted on 24 March, 2008 by Martin Stabe

"A [US] penny minted before 1982 is ninety-five per cent copper—which, at recent prices, is approximately two and a half cents’ worth ... (Breaking stride to pick up a penny, if it takes more than 6.15 seconds, pays less than the federal minimum wage.

BBC News: The invisible computer revolution

Posted on 19 January, 2008 by Martin Stabe

"Along with the internet, with which it is rapidly merging, [the mobile phone network in the developing world] is the most astonishing technology story of our time, and one that has the power to revolutionise access to information across the developing wo

Stumbling and Mumbling: Noise, signal & news

Posted on 30 October, 2007 by Martin Stabe

Chris Dillow: "'News' is a mere artefact. It's defined not by any standards rooted in epistemology or information theory, but is merely a commodity produced where journalists happen to be..."

Danah Boyd: iewing American class divisions through Facebook and MySpace

Posted on 25 June, 2007 by Martin Stabe

Danah Boyd argues that social networks are becoming class-divided: high-social-status American teens are all on or switching to Facebook while marginalized, low-SES, "non-hegemonic", teens continue to be drawn to MySpace.

CNET News.com: Yahoo hires economics, sociology researchers

Posted on 10 May, 2007 by Martin Stabe

"Duncan Watts, professor of sociology at Columbia University ... and author of Six Degrees: The Science of a Connected Age, will lead Yahoo's research in human social dynamics, including social networks and collaborative problem solving."

Joe Wikert’s Publishing 2020 Blog: More Flawed Newspaper Logic

Posted on 8 May, 2007 by Martin Stabe

Yes, newspapers generate more profit per reader than their web sites -- "If someone could have prevented the combustion engine and automobile industries from launching, the horse transportation industry would have remained lucrative as well."

Virtual Economics: "ITV will keep control online"

Posted on 2 May, 2007 by Martin Stabe

Seamus McCauley reiterates that content creation is not the source of value in newspapers: "Think about it this way - if content creation the source of value why ... are newspaper owners so rich and journalists not?"

Martin Stabe

A UK-centric look at new media and online journalism

Category Archives: economics