News You Can Use (If you pay for it)

Inside the business section of a local Sydney paper I found a tiny article on a big subject: how can newspapers survive the digital age? Homeboy Rupert Murdoch thinks he knows the answer to that angst-inducing query.

Apparently, the mega-mogul is rounding up a consortium of paper media concerns with on-line presence, with the goal of orchestrating a near-simultaneous roll-out of pay-for-view. He wants all on-line 'newspapers' to charge for access to content, and he wants them to do it in lock-step to give the customer no choice but to pony up.

I can see the logic in it. And the panic. Newspapers are losing subscribers faster than the tundra is thawing in Nome. Worse still, advertisers have flown the coup seeking cheaper venues in these recessionary times. Meanwhile, more and more (read: millions) are now getting at least some of their news on-line, and not paying a dime.

So why not make them pay a little for the privilege and convenience?

That's a reasonable question, but it bothers me that Rupert Murdoch is attempting the answer. If there were anyone on this planet I'd rather NOT have leading this charge, it's the Mandarin from Down Under. Having single-handedly reduced the diversity in printed and televised news by buying up damn near everything he could, why should anyone trust Mr. Monopoly with this initiative?

It may be inevitable that internet news be a mix of free and pay-to-view, but that balance will be delicate, and needs an unbiased guide to its fruition. Mr. Murdoch is about as biased as you can get.