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This is a fascinating look at why the News Media Bargaining Code was doomed from the outset, written by a man with first-hand experience of it. Scott Purcell, co-founder of Man of Many — Australia’s largest men’s lifestyle news website — provides a rare insight into the NMBC from inception to now, and addresses the systematic flaws within it that ultimately hamstrung it:
“However, in practice, the negotiation dynamics have heavily favoured legacy media outlets with long-standing influence and established networks within Australia’s concentrated media market. Significant funding legacy platforms further amplify this influence have dedicated to lobbying efforts, enhancing their political power and sway over media policy decisions.”
It’s no secret that we at Media Voices think schemes like the NMBC are naked cash grabs from big publishers, who are using emotive language around ‘saving journalism’ to disguise that fact while leaving smaller and indie publishers out in the cold. What is especially heartening to hear from Purcell is how he wishes for further collaboration — not simple compensation — between publishers and platforms.
It’s very easy to forget that AI use in newsrooms is nothing all that new, given the furore over GenAI since the start of 2023. But it’s been playing a role within newsrooms for quite some time, and while this example from THE CITY isn’t going to set the world aflame it’s an interesting case study in how low-key AI can deliver benefits to audiences.
Here’s a lovely little practical story about a newspaper doing well, of the sort we so rarely get to include these days. Email is the engine of newspaper subscriptions in more than a few ways, from widening the funnel by which people discover content through to delivering promotional offers and relevant content. The Toronto Star’s David Topping breaks down how the team approaches email lists in a very neat way here.
Finally, there’s another potential roadblock being thrown up between Redbird IMI and its purchase of The Telegraph. More than 100 MPs made a plea to block the sale of the newspaper to a UAE-funded firm on the ground “the move threatens to undermine free press in the UK”. I need to get my thoughts straight on that as an argument, to be honest. Let me know what you think by replying to this email!
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