From The Top
Special Delivery
Multiplatform is the way of the future in serving young readers.
These days, multiplatform delivery is very much on the minds of newspaper people. And those involved with attracting and retaining young readers are no exception.
This issue of NAA Foundation Update features advice from youth editors on launching Web sites for teens, as well as on using social networking sites to promote teen sections. Also profiled is a teen program’s recent change from print to online.
Last fall, a story in our magazine focused on the issue of online NIE delivery. While there are no statistics as yet on the actual number of NIE e-editions, figures from the Audit Bureau of Circulations as of press time show that 135 newspapers currently submit e-editions as paid circulation.
Although the number of e-editions is still low, it’s safe to say that it will continue to grow. So it makes sense that NIE and youth content professionals are thinking about ways to meet the “e-challenge.” If traffic on our e-forums is any indication, they are thinking about it quite a bit.
With input from members of the NAA Foundation Board of Trustees and Youth Services Committee as well as from other newspaper professionals, we at the NAA Foundation are considering how we can help our constituents address the issue of multiplatform delivery. In fact, multiplatform delivery is a key component of the NAA Foundation’s three-year strategic plan, which was implemented in 2006.
The challenges of multiplatform delivery are considerable. Not every newspaper is equipped yet to handle the technological demands. Some newspapers serve communities where citizens have limited access to Internet service providers. The country as a whole is not quite to the point where there’s a computer in every home, or even every classroom. But the very future of the newspaper industry depends upon multiplatform delivery, so we must be ready to move forward.
We recently formed a task force whose goal is to develop a blueprint for delivering NIE online. The task force is comprised of representatives from newspapers and newspaper companies both large and small, and in various stages of multiplatform growth.
In addition, the NAA Foundation and The Poynter Institute’s News University are collaborating on an online module to help youth editors and scholastic advisers train the students who write for them. We also are partnering with the Student Press Law Center on an ongoing instructional series about student media law featuring downloadable PowerPoint presentations, online quizzes and now podcasts.
We embrace these opportunities to explore strategies that will help newspapers come up with fresh and interactive approaches to serving the youth audience. We welcome your suggestions as we embark upon this exciting mission. Feel free to contact us with your ideas!
Sincerely,
Margaret Vassilikos
Senior Vice President/Chief Financial Officer
NAA and NAA Foundation
(571) 366-1010
vassm@naa.org
