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AFTER the first EDSA Revolution, there were many of
the decrees of then President Marcos which were left to stand in
order to prevent disruption in the operations of government. One of
these is a decree that prohibits so-called tri-media companies from
being in both print and electronic media. The separation of
newspapers and magazines from radio and television was to ensure
that no one company would be able to accumulate power by having
control of the major communication media.
Media moguls have to decide
whether go into electronic or print media. It soon became obvious
that an effective and healthy media organization must have a hand in
all three. And so major radio and television networks worked out
cooperative relationships.
This was a two-edged arrangement
as far as the public (or the recipients) were concerned. It is true
that while there were at least two such arrangements involving the
two biggest newspapers and radio and television networks, the
combined tri-media of one group could exert unhealthy pressure on
the public. And this is particularly true during elections.
To help their clients, the major
newspaper machinery manufacturers of Germany—Heidelberg and
manroland—conducted studies on how newspapers can survive in the
current media thicket. Manroland published a study by Ingo Woelk, a
media analyst in its redesigned newspaper, manroland Messenger, on
how newspapers may survive in the modern media thicket. In the last
portion of the study, Woelk discusses the concept of media
positioning. It is both instructive for editors and publishers and
essential for readers. Here’s how a teleserye of a TV show is
promoted:
“Ensuring economic success by
attaining a strong position in the media circus is also important
for newspapers. How does media position itself and how do recipients
evaluate the position? The marketing chain for casting shows, which
are operated based on the same pattern worldwide, provide an example
of this issue. Entertainment concepts with specific formats are
aired internationally and called “Deutschland sucht den
Superstar,” “Pop Idle,” or “Nouvelle Star.” The TV format
requires mass popularity to achieve the desired viewing rates. It
enters into an alliance with newspapers, in this case, the yellow
press, which in turn produces headlines relative to the TV shows,
increasing viewing rates and newspaper circulation alike. The
Internet recycles the contents and makes excerpts of the show
available to everyone on various home pages, independent of time
restrictions. Subsequently, the Internet becomes an important
marketing channel for the music. In the meantime, television fills
additional programming time with waste material from the show (also
known as background reports), special magazine editions are
produced, the merchandising industry takes its share and the mobile
phone industry produces ting tones. Radio plays its role a bit later
by making the published music popular through constant rotation.
“Why is all these typical of
media positioning? Because no medium can exist without the others,
and only by interacting and cooperating with one another can they
all benefit. Newspapers are an important medium in this process
providing a TV format with the proper leverage to launch the entire
media machinery and for a topic to become a mass phenomenon. And
just as fascinating, consumers have accepted all of the above and
steadily consume their way through these media offers as though in a
trance.
“The world seems to be in a
rush of communication. Are newspapers being run over? Not at all.
Printed newspapers have maintained their roots. They constitute the
only form of media that does not focus on interactivity. This
interactivity is provided in the blogs and forums on the home pages
of newspapers. We have found that many of the most frequently
accessed and thus most successful home pages are those of newspapers
and magazines. The classic newspaper product integrates itself into
the media structure without uprooting its journalistic foundations.
And let’s not forget that the global circulation of paid
newspapers is increasing: in 2006 by 1.9 percent reaching 510
million copies, or 4.3 percent including free sheets. There are more
newspapers than ever before approximately 11,000 all in all. (WAN
World Press Trends 2006, update 2007). Nevertheless, newspapers must
improve in order to set their position in the competitive media
sector. In existing markets this is achieved with pioneering
business models. Smaller formats, four-color and heatset covers
(front pages) make the appearance more attractive. Faster plate
changes increase production possibilities for more topical,
target-group friendly volumes. In developing nations where people
are gradually discovering media variety, newspapers must be
recognized as an attractive medium from the start in order to
maintain their global appeal to readers and advertising customers.
Newspapers are not rooted to the spot. Rather they enjoy a secure
position that is solid as a rock in the media fast lane.”
opinion@manilatimes.net
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