Dear Old Media (OM),
Although the letter below is written in reference to a specific article, it is not directed to the WSJ in particular and actually The Journal is not even among the OM organizations I find most offensive. There have been a slew of other articles and television news reports which have been much further off the mark.
This letter is the beginning of what may become a series of letters to THE BIG GUY: Old Media (OM). OM is a guy, by the way, in case there was any question.
Dear OM,
While I am flattered, for sure, to be included in the WSJ article, and found it pleasant speaking with its author, John Jurgensen, it smacks of that familiar OM condescension and suffers from a real lack of understanding of this space and its inhabitants. Case in point, this line:
The greatest hope of most Web amateurs is to cross over into "old media" outlets like TV networks and Hollywood.
Really? I know a lot of "web amateurs" and that's not what I am hearing. I would rewrite that line to read: The greatest hope of most Web professionals is to continue working online and to be paid what they are worth while doing so.
Right now... you can make money. But you can't make what you are worth... yet. One year from now I think the whole landscape will be different... we'll see sustainable independent online video projects everywhere we look. Goody!
You're afraid, OM, just afraid. And that's totally legitimate. Media is moving in beautiful and scary and exciting ways. Look at new media (NM) as a challenge, not a threat.
Or, coming at you from another angle, let us in cuz we are coming in anyway. You know it, man. So let's find ways to co-exist in harmony.
NM wants to make friends with you but we want a true friendship... not one of those ones where we get to be your little sister who doesn't make bank... or some lame-o sidekick that gets your runoff.
How long until you take us seriously? Do you have an ETA?
Carson Daly is apparently cool with locking Brookers up and "figuring it out later". OM, OM, OM...tsk, tsk, tsk. You, OM, need to get out of the business of trying to lock people up! As an executive at a major new media empire recently said to me: "ubiquity is the new exclusivity".
P.S. OM, hire better consultants, please... ones that are familiar with this space because they live in it not because they've researched living in it.
This letter is the beginning of what may become a series of letters to THE BIG GUY: Old Media (OM). OM is a guy, by the way, in case there was any question.
Dear OM,
While I am flattered, for sure, to be included in the WSJ article, and found it pleasant speaking with its author, John Jurgensen, it smacks of that familiar OM condescension and suffers from a real lack of understanding of this space and its inhabitants. Case in point, this line:
The greatest hope of most Web amateurs is to cross over into "old media" outlets like TV networks and Hollywood.
Really? I know a lot of "web amateurs" and that's not what I am hearing. I would rewrite that line to read: The greatest hope of most Web professionals is to continue working online and to be paid what they are worth while doing so.
Right now... you can make money. But you can't make what you are worth... yet. One year from now I think the whole landscape will be different... we'll see sustainable independent online video projects everywhere we look. Goody!
You're afraid, OM, just afraid. And that's totally legitimate. Media is moving in beautiful and scary and exciting ways. Look at new media (NM) as a challenge, not a threat.
Or, coming at you from another angle, let us in cuz we are coming in anyway. You know it, man. So let's find ways to co-exist in harmony.
NM wants to make friends with you but we want a true friendship... not one of those ones where we get to be your little sister who doesn't make bank... or some lame-o sidekick that gets your runoff.
How long until you take us seriously? Do you have an ETA?
Carson Daly is apparently cool with locking Brookers up and "figuring it out later". OM, OM, OM...tsk, tsk, tsk. You, OM, need to get out of the business of trying to lock people up! As an executive at a major new media empire recently said to me: "ubiquity is the new exclusivity".
P.S. OM, hire better consultants, please... ones that are familiar with this space because they live in it not because they've researched living in it.
posted by Amanda @ 10:35 AM
22 Comments:
At 5:59 PM,
tflamb said…
Ug don't get me started on consultants. Its those that can't do, consult. Ever notice that you rarely find a consultant that has actually worked in the area they are consulting on? They never have the "street" level view so while what they advise is full of the crap that managers eat up, it rarely creates good policy.
At 6:22 PM,
Brian Newhouse said…
My question is how do you suppose that OM hire consultants without compromising the integrity of the NM and emerging distaste to 'selling out' to corporate media? Without a doubt independentcy is taking over, but how can there be a fair trade off of money for newfound success while allowing the NM to 'continue working online' as they wish? I believe that OM won't budge without their name on it and NM won't compromise their integrity, cuz thats NM's underlying character. Might I propose a creation of new 'companies' (sites like amanda's last job), places, that can allow OM to sponsor without namedropping and NM to be paid based on success and hits? OM gets renamed and gets to reinvent itself through its NM participants... just brainstorming.
At 6:48 PM,
The Villager said…
While I agree that we are definitely in the early stages of a power shift away from Big Media as the Voice of God - I can't help but think that the online community still is publishing largely "for each other". The big difference between NM and OM, besides the history, is the access to BIG NUMBERS of people that read or consume, but have no stake in the media spaces themselves. I don't hink the blogging community, or the vlog community is there yet - WE are still our our main audience. Of course, this is fine as soon as there are enough of us. No, we don't want to be part of Old Media, we just want their mass audience - then the money will come.
At 7:05 PM,
Brian Newhouse said…
Good point. Could the online community overcome this by meeting OM in its own territory? What about creating a low-budget channel that would broadcast webcasts on say, something like cable. Sponsors would jump to the idea because of the popularity of webcasts. Over time, TV and the internet will become one... so we might as well jump in while the viewership has proven this successful.
Granted, this would be a tremendous amount of work, but I believe if someone were to put forth the effort, there would be a following that would make it financially successful and professionally well done. If you can't beat em, join em... then beat em.
At 7:30 PM,
Brian Newhouse said…
and of course the same could be said for newspapers, just to cover all OM bases. Like a cnn.com covering sweetass webcasts and interesting stories, on and off the net.
At 8:05 PM,
Justin said…
I think there's a lot of dispute about what the ultimate goal of NM is; you hit a big nail on the head with the pay-for-your-worth issue, but I think that pod/vidcasting has seen the rise of people who just enjoy what they do and want to spread their joy with others. It's seemed to me that there are three (not necessarily mutually exclusive) areas of NM figures: those who want exposure, those who want to get paid for what they love, and those who want to fix something. I don't think it's a coincidence that a large portion of NM personalities want to reshape how OM has shaped the world thus far; this is the time to do it better.
I also find it funny that OM is trying to capture NM figures as some sort of "stars of tomorrow" set. One of the advantages of NM is that there will always be new faces, new fads, new perspectives; there will always be the well-known few that people will recognize and remember, but the large majority will be people who the world has never seen.
At 8:39 PM,
ChrisM70 said…
Amanda, you wrote:
"Right now... you can make money. But you can't make what you are worth... yet."
I agree that the old media and the majority of the public don't give new media enough credit, but if you say you can't make what you are worth yet, then what exactly IS making what you are worth? Enough to pay rent? Making $100,000 a year? Making as much as Connie Chung does while falling off a piano?
Again, I completely agree that there are a lot of talented people doing fantastic work, but I'm sure almost everyone thinks they don't make what they are worth - regardless of what field they work in.
I guess my point is this:
If no one is willing to give you the money you feel you are worth, then you probably aren't worth it.
YET.
With that said, I totally agree that blogging/vlogging podcasting, etc. is going to change EVERYTHING. In the next 10 years, television will be DEAD. The web will swallow television, and those people who are already in NewMedia andhave good ideas and great content will absolutely be able to make a good (if not extravagant) living from it. Also, I love the fact that new media shows like "PhotoshopTV" and "Tiki Bar" can reach such a niche audience and bring people together!
Also,
I am also curious... What would you define as OLD MEDIA? What is NEW MEDIA?
Can Old Media become New Media? Can it be both?
I find this whole future of media very interesting - that's why I'm asking the questions!
Thanks for the forum to speak.
At 9:28 PM,
Bryan said…
Hes a jerk-face
At 9:54 PM,
- Terrence said…
Now that's what I'm talking about Amanda! You hit the nail on the head when you say OM sees the wired way as a threat. A touch of that attitude is certainly seen in the journal article.
There are new media outlets that are certainly competitive and flourishing as numbers go. I think too many have their eyes on the major three TV networks and thus don't realize that many new media outlets have higher viewership than a lot of established cable channels. Many blogs have greater readership than the circulation of known magazines.
OM wants to keep a lid on this until he can find a way to pull it under his control, and gather all the keys to the doors to free expression. Otherwise, some regular people might take a real big chunk of the potential OM was planning to hoard for himself!
At 10:12 PM,
J said…
This really hits it on the head. I wrote a tiraide on this sort of matter a week or so ago, but its more crass. More of a 'F-you to hollywood' piece. check it out if you'd like
Keep up the amazing work, Amanda. You're an inspiration to bloggers, vloggers, creative people and people who refuse to be screwed.
At 11:46 PM,
Crackpot Press said…
Amanda,
Stop whining. You got hosed. Welcome to the real world.
Sure the MSM is going to lump you in with all the other one trick ponies.
Now is your time to write what you want to write. You have a big mic... rock it.
Don't get tangled in the muck.
Dave
crackpotpress.com
At 5:37 AM,
Tony said…
OM = Old Man? A ton of great points in there from somebody who has had to deal with that kind of condescension first hand.
At 7:29 AM,
WO7 said…
Amanda...You Go Girl!
At 8:40 AM,
Brian Newhouse said…
Hmm, one more, then I'll lay off. You've stirred me Amanda. This is good stuff up for debate. At the bottom of the WSJ article, the kind of rap sheet of all the best blogs out there... could this possibly be the next version of how we read news? They broke it down into different categories, much like OM websites now, except they're fun, inspiring and gives the little guys something to shoot for. Someone's gotta cull all the best blogs out there and start a powerhouse. Something to express all of the web's capabilities... screw the TV idea, take your old news job, add in current popular webcasts, and vah-wollah... you got your channel. Spread the hype then wait for the concession phone call from OM.
At 9:07 AM,
Mario Persona said…
No, the OM professionals won't find it easy to understand NM behavior because they have a different way to see the public. OM is done by teams for the crowds, NM is done by individuals to their tribes. In Brazil we have a few cases of good bloggers and vloggers who are being hired by the OM, but it is very clear things change when they talk to the mass.
The problem is that when you are in NM, you have a very well defined niche and many other "birds of a feather" flocking together with you. Not in OM. Once you are there, you have to compromise because there is money and there are advertisers involved and you have to find the least common denominator to talk to crowds.
In old times this would be the same as CNN hiring those who nailed their own news on telephone poles (I think there is a name for it in English). What NM can do? Well, it can keep nailing their own work on CNN and WSJ poles. Today it is not yet a time for amalgamation, but it is a good time to get a ride, isn't it? I'm sure Amanda and others will benefit from this free ride on WSJ.
Mario Persona (from Brazil) tvbarbante.blogspot.com
At 10:13 AM,
Brian Newhouse said…
Mario,
NM tribes have yet to hit the masses. This marks the revolution of media, independent opinion. It's no longer the money calling the shots, it's money following the most honest and unbiased opinion. NM is in a way what OM has been trying to preach, but has had a clouded mind keeping in mind the need to impress. OM wouldn't be if there was no money. NM is (stands)... without money at all. The effort is already there for NM to express itself free from slant, without pay... and it works. This is what people want.
Free ride/promotion now, evolution of professional opinion tomorrow.
Brian Newhouse
www.globetrottr.com
At 12:31 PM,
Bob del Grosso said…
I think it's pretty funny that as OM entities scurry to increase their web presence, lest they die from want of advertising revenue, their minions still hang on to the illusion of their media's inherent superiority. It's kind of pathetic really.
At 2:07 PM,
Brian Solis said…
OM is going to learn this the hard way. It's only a question of when...not if.
I know several folks who started vlogs for fun who have found a way to make money while staying on course. The process of selling and discovery is gaining incredible momentum. It WILL attract $ and viewers leaving OM to either invest, imitate or die.
At 8:21 PM,
danielmcvicar said…
That's a letter worth writing. I can picture its delivery.
It will be delivered to an intern at the OM who will stack it with many other letters. Then it will be forwarded down a long hall on a trolley.
It will get stacked up in a corner and counted. Checked for anthrax.
In the meantime TPTB at the OM are locking up talent, locking down their territory and trying to get laid.
And the world goes round.
As I said at Blogher, the barrier to entry now is negligible. The barrier to quality is higher. And the NM and OM both need to get used to that.
It's fun and interesting. Thanks for the post.
At 6:25 AM,
Jorge Cocompech said…
OM??? become to NM?? (as a TV star, i don't thing so . .)
They need a lot of information bou't the new world on the web..
But.. they want to thing as they can move. .
I send you a million of strawberries kisses and jaguar hugs . .
Jorge Cocompech
At 12:22 AM,
YRG said…
I don't understand the OM-NM argument. When you pit technology against itself, naturally the newer stuff is going to win. There is no such thing as old or new media. It's all media. Radio changed when television came along. So did movies. There was a lot of upheaval and fighting, claiming that one technology was better or more pure than the other. Older writers swear by their typewriters while young writers blog. It is dangerous to get caught up in the technology when you are a content creator because there will always be something better coming along. Are videobloggers going to complain about people who create video content for mobile phones? What if new hybrid videogame/communication videos become a new mode of communication and storytelling? Will this new technology be the upstart that the unborn children of tomorrow use to start their revolution? Focus on the content. That's what will last. Homer and Shakespeare still sell, except now you can get them on your Pocket PC.
At 12:42 PM,
DudeAsInCool said…
I work in old media and new media. They are different animals. And believe it or not, Kingdom2000, there are consultants who know what they are doing
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