News changes daily. Always has, by definition.

But rarely – if ever – have the platforms, players and processes changed this much.

In the last decade, we’ve evolved from top-down monologues from NY, Washington and LA – to the ‘Wikinews’ of the internet, in which every blogger is a source with a global sounding board. We have tweeting, chirping and buzzing devices that keep us perpetually connected. Screens in elevators and above the urinals. Ubiquity is everywhere.

So – the newsroom of the future will have to reflect these radical developments. How? Three major characteristics:

(1) Pro-Am Team of Journalists. Newsrooms that ignore amateur and citizen journalists do so at their own risk. Stories break on Twitter, Youtube and Blogs every day. The challenge of the news organizations will be vetting and authenticating. It was the same issue a short time ago with TMZ. Journalists must recognize that tips and topics come from all corners. The most successful modern newsrooms will embrace the trend and find ways to include a variety of voices. In fact, it’s already happening with weather and sports video, and the op-ed page is full of citizen voices.  Bureaus run by student and retired journalists. Daddy bloggers. High School sports fans. They should all be able to contribute content. Smart newsrooms will become the ‘watering hole’ of media for the communities they serve.

(2) Mixed Media Storytelling. Each of us have unique and divergent appetites for media consumption. Journalists should understand and accommodate. Maybe I prefer to download a daily podcast and listen to the news during a morning walk. Maybe my daughter prefers to read a short article online. Maybe my mom still likes the 6pm news. Modern newsrooms will be able to narrate the latest news on multiple outlets, for multiple audiences. To some degree, this is already happening. In many cases, however, newsrooms only give lip service to the ‘supplemental’ channels and stay the course with the big, traditional platforms that have driven the revenue for decades. It’s time to recognize that the days of appointment TV and ink-on-paper are fading and the traditional business model will soon only be a small piece of the pie.

(3) Relevance. Make it matter. This is an OLD concept, but never more important. In an era of “shoot and show” journalism, it’s usually cheaper to shoot the crime scene, show it at 10pm, and worry about the impact later. But eventually the audience starts asking “what’s the point?”. The relevance piece has always been the hardest part of the puzzle. Does a raging fire 90 miles away from me really matter? Does the heinous murder three counties over really affect my life today? Does the weather in Haiti make a difference for me – now? Possibly. But only if the writers, reporters, editors and producers have the perspective and judgement to widen the scope and the skill to add real context.

Big Picture – what viewers & readers REALLY want is hyper-local news. What’s happening today in my ZIP code? In my kid’s school district? At my church or synagogue? Newsrooms of today will argue that they don’t have the resources to deliver this much targeted and geo-specific content. Newsrooms of the future will provide it.

Modern newsrooms – like the slick new look at KPBS in San Diego (photo) – will have to adopt all three characteristics. Not easy. But essential. Stay tuned.

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Kodak filed for bankruptcy because – as we all know – the leadership failed to keep current.

According to Richard Harmer of the Brady Media Group, these Deal-A-Day sites don

Denied. Deleted. Diluted. Drummed out. Dumped.

The sheer volume of media content being pumped into the digital landscape today is immense. Most of it is drab, dull and weak. Consequently, we have been trained to ignore it. We automatically tune out.

We have become much better at excluding media than receiving it. We TiVO commercials, ignore print and outdoor ads and subscribe to satellite radio so that we don’t have to listen to those annoying 30-second spots. Right? Well OK. Not everybody. SOME of us still absorb SOME traditional media. But not nearly as many of us pay nearly as much attention. Most sophisticated marketing departments now develop ‘integrated’ marketing campaigns – which are a mix of old and new.

But my point today is that we are becoming neurologically numb to any media that is uninvited and / or unwanted. Psychologists today are talking about IFS – Information Fatigue Syndrome, and DAD – Divided Attention Disorder, and Cognitive Overload. I’m not kidding. These are real terms – coined to describe the disruptive influence of too much media. The brain simply can’t process the amount of information that floods our environment daily. So, we screen out most of it.

And we really only digest the media that arrives ‘by invitation only.’

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