You Need to Catch a Cold!!

The common cold - a metaphor of life? Journalism in search of a soul. Another bold headline prediction. And…a media executive offers a critique of ME!

Three Headlines Coming Soon - Final Chapter

But first…

I have a Cold, I’m miserable, and nothing else matters. Country on the brink? World War III just around the corner? My LA Rams suck? WHO CARES! MY DAMN NOSE WON’T STOP RUNNING AND I’M ACHY!! It’s all consuming and I’m convinced it’s going to last forever.

You get the picture. We’ve all been there, in fact, many of us live there 24/7 even without the provocation of the sniffles. What I’ve come to realize during the fleeting, foggy, few minutes of intermittent relief provided by my dear friends NyQuil, DayQuil, Tylenol, and Afrin is that the common Cold is a great metaphor for life in general. We tend to spend our time consumed with the feelings and emotions of what’s happening to me right now without the benefit of much perspective or context.

The funny part is when I’ve actually been able to shift my thoughts this week from pitiful me to something more meaningful, viola! I feel better…until, that is, I slip back into the tiny world of my head and, once again, become convinced that I’m more miserable than I’ve ever been in my life.

Perspective is good for what ails us whether we realize it or not. It’s important we remember that and, for those of us who report the news, important we make it a part of every story told. A bigger picture mindset makes us smarter, more sympathetic, empathetic, and way less whiny and annoying.

Ok, This Hurts a Little…

I am not a fan of Journalism Degrees in general, because I think too often the focus is more on how to get a job as opposed to gaining knowledge about the world you’re about to report on. That said, I’ll admit to being a little hurt by the ZipRecruiter survey of the 10 Most Regretted College Majors which lists Journalism as - far and away - THE most regretted by those grads entering the job market. It was a very small sample of folks, but I think pretty accurate and no great surprise.

Salaries most certainly have not kept pace with the rest of the professional world, and the prestige, honor, and legitimacy of this once glorified calling has been subject to unrelenting attack over the past few years, as well. But I think there’s more to it than that. I believe the Art of Journalism has been lost in the name of consolidation, efficiency and cost-cutting. The industry has systematically devalued or eliminated those parts of the job that fed the soul and fulfilled the need for creative expression. Things like rich and textured storytelling, beautifully moving video and photo essays, masterful editing, and magical post-production. Artistic pursuits that helped pierce the outer shell and touch the very heart of audiences and readers over the years, have given way to templates, rote procedures, generic and interchangeable graphics, and a quantity over quality orientation that has literally killed the soul of the business, or at least led to its disappearance.

We went from being a profession that, in many ways, created itself anew each and every day, to a factory cranking out those same, gray, nondescript, widgets day in, day out.

So Do Something About It…

Let’s restore the Art. Come to grips with/fully exploit the reality that you can no longer be all things to all people and focus on being a source of deep connection and meaning. Claim your niche. Lose the assembly line in favor of individually crafted work that engages and prompts a reaction. Be the place where those with a burning desire to create come to play. If that means fewer throwaway stories are covered and even fewer irrelevant newscasts aired… so be it. Choose quality over quantity - restore the Art and, in the end, I guarantee it’ll be Good for Business. Good for the profession. Good for the soul.

And Now Our Feature Presentation…

For the past two weeks I’ve provided you with two of three Headlines that I believe are coming soon. As I mentioned at the outset, none are informed by insider info, just some simple landscape evaluation, a little historical perspective, and a very liberal connecting of the dots. Let’s review…

#1 Google Buys CNN

#2 Hello Wayne’s World! Local TV Redefined

And now, without further adieu, our final headline from the future:

#3 Mega Consolidation: The Shrinking of American Media

In case you haven’t noticed, the word unsustainable is popping up a lot these days in articles about various parts of the media landscape - from retransmission fees to the overall economics of an exploding streaming universe. All signs point to significant change being necessary in the near future, which I think will lead to a period of consolidation like no other in the History of the Business.

Scenario #1..When Networks Collide

Media is an industry where size definitely matters and the benchmark of how big is big enough seems to tick up faster than today’s soaring interest rates. Case in point: Paramount (formerly Viacom/CBS) and NBC Universal/Peacock have been, for decades, legendary in the business of media. True titans who have led the way in shaping the entertainment and news landscape around the world. They are two huge companies, with enormous reach, and yet in this new world now shifted to streaming distribution, are staring down a growing reality that they may not be big enough to make the cut.

Apple, Netflix, and Disney+ have thus far established themselves as leaders of the pack and most industry experts agree that it’s going to be hard for Paramount or NBC/Peacock to catch up. With that in mind, I believe we’ll soon see at least one MEGA merger in the space, and the most likely pairing is Paramount and NBC. There are all kinds of reasons why the three aforementioned leaders in the field wouldn’t want to take on the baggage of those two companies, not the least of which is no interest on their parts in taking on the local television station or network business. So, as complex as it would be, I’m betting the murmuring of a potential combination of Paramount and NBC/Peacock will bubble to surface in the near future. Whether Comcast, NBC’s parent, will spin that part of the business off or consume Paramount whole remains to be seen, but definitely stay tuned. And yes, I’m aware that such a move would mean one company controlling two broadcast/streaming networks. I’m just not sure, in the final analysis, it will matter all that much.

How this shakes out will be incredibly interesting to watch but I would suggest there are a couple of things on the horizon that could happen sooner rather than later.

Scenario #2…TV Stations Go the Way of Radio

In 1996 Congress enacted the Telecommunications Act that effectively eliminated ownership caps in the radio business. They made the move because radio was dying and it was seen as the only way to help it remain viable in this country. The legislation led to massive consolidation of the industry with a few companies dominating ownership in the industry. All signs point to that being the future of television as well. I mean, we’re already close to that now with Nexstar, Sinclair, Gray, Scripps, and TEGNA owning the lion’s share of stations, but there’s definitely a next step.

With the move to streaming, the inevitable reduction or loss of retransmission fees paid to stations, and declining viewership overall, soon Congress and/or the FCC will have no choice but to raise or eliminate ownership caps for television. When that happens, and it won’t be long, there will be a flurry of consolidation activity. It’s inevitable.

My bet is Nexstar, Gray, and maybe Scripps will, at least initially, be aggressive predators operating under the reality that whichever loses the acquisition battle will be consumed themselves.

And Finally…

An interesting bit of feedback from a local media executive about this here little newsletter. You know you’re in trouble when the sentence begins…“Joel, I really try to read it, but…” But? But what? The screen on your computer or phone is cracked and the words are blurry? The scroll function is broken? But?? Let me be crystal clear, readers are tough to come by and the criticism of even one represents an existential crisis prompting deep, deep soul searching when you’re on this side of the screen.

As it turns out…this “but” was connected to the fact that so much of what we talk about is the sad state of local media, a world she lives in each and every day. Seems her angst and worry is magnified when we talk about the medium’s latest tumble or woe, which I’ll admit we do a LOT, because well…I digress. Truth is, I get that, so let me be clear about something…

I’m obsessed with local media. Well, all media really, but local is where I started and spent some of the best, and most rewarding, years of my career. I care about it deeply, and honestly believe that the vibrant existence of local news, above and beyond all others, is absolutely essential to our way of life. Given that, I will admit completely that I grow incredibly frustrated by the fact that so many in our business treat it like any other job - a mere means to an end. Seemingly unable or unwilling to grasp the urgency of where things stand and, as a result, do nothing about it. I know that frustration is routinely reflected in the words on these pages.

So, with that, for those of you for which this business is a passion and a calling, like my refreshingly honest (aka blunt) local media executive friend, please keep scratching, clawing, and fighting with all your heart to insure it remains relevant. Know that I am with you in spirit because I can think of no more worthy a cause. And with that…no more friggin feedback! Kidding. Love it and welcome it always. Let ‘er rip!

Now, where did I put the DayQuil…