Grabbing the digital bull by the digital horns
TECHNOLOGY invented itself faster than the media could react and with it came what appears to be a slow motion death of newspapers.
Around the world, newspapers have one by one started closing their doors, with a similar picture in Namibia where the once unimaginable scenario has lately become grimly conceivable as newspapers shrink themselves into survival by retrenching journalists, reduce their print circulation, cutting content and increasing newspaper and advertising prices in an effort to cover their overhead costs.
As bad as things appear to be, things will only get worse for those who are unable to outsmart their competitors and plan an all-digital future as printing presses turn off.
While the financial crisis is not something we can do anything about, the internet certainly is something we can do something about.
The amount of time people spend reading newspapers has declined dramatically, while the amount of time that people spend consuming news across all platforms has expanded dramatically.
At Informanté, we have made no secret of the fact that we are much more concerned about telling stories than we are about the platform.
What social media has done for us is make the sharing of information global and nonstop.
It’s not just about news and information anymore. It’s about the social exchangeability of that news and that is why we are building our infrastructure around digital platforms.
The latest development is the Informanté e-paper, now available on our website and the Informanté Facebook page, which will soon hit the half a million followers mark.
With the e-paper, we are no longer talking about a readership, we are talking about an audience and social currency.
Informanté is essentially creating a national editorial board of readers guiding, building, criticising, informing and shaping their own paper.
The trust we have in our audience is not blind, it is one that they have earned by becoming the most active commentators and distributors of our stories while taking possession of their own editorial.
We are harnessing the power of technology and the digital revolution to change the way people consume news with our multimedia content.
It does not end with our e-paper because Informanté Radio will be the next frontier.
Already broadcasting in Oshakati, Otjiwarongo, Mariental and Keetmanshoop, Informanté Radio will also give our audience more opportunities to engage and stay informed.
In crisis we are not only aware of the danger, but we recognise the opportunity.
