Broadcast Media is OUT, Narrowcast Media is IN

Dec 22, 2010

With our core business & expertise in media consulting, at every year-end people keep asking as to which way the media is heading to in the year ahead. At the end of the year 2010, the very same curiosity has got even more relevance with the kind of media expose that the country has seen, both internally with Radia tapes and globally with WikiLeaks. Will it change the shape of things in media? And with TRACK2MEDIA Consulting launching its first news project in the form of e newspaper on real estate sector, Track2Realty, it is all the more necessary for us to release a fact-sheet on the media roadmap that we find shaping up in the year 2011.
Different people have different reasons to be curious-journalist friends want to know whether the entry of more players will just add up to the number of jobs; or the increasing competition will have some impact on the pay packets as well. The clients in the corporate world are always curious to understand the behavioral dilemma with the necessary evil called media. But most importantly the new players who are eager to explore in the media business want to understand as to what makes a media project viable.
Well, TRACK2MEDIA Consulting as a communication management group has lost a couple of upcoming media projects in the year 2010 because we have been upfront in telling the clients that their approach to replicate the model, both in content & revenue, of existing biggies is fraught with dangers. Every wannabe in the media business, unfortunately, tries to replicate the existing news project, and in the process turns out to be the poor Xerox version of the existing players. When the global management consulting company McKinsey forecasted a few years back that India will soon see around 500 TV channels uplinked, it had probably no idea as to how the business of news & entertainment will see a horizontal growth than vertical one.
Some of the regional channels competing in a cluttered market are a testimony of the fact that it is not just niche market that is a key to success. Most of them have failed to evolve a serious game plan and hence unable to create a community around them. This failure has also brought a sea change compromise in the standards and ethics of journalism. Jobs are offered nowadays not just on the journalistic merit, but the ability to raise revenue from the region that is on offer. Still, most of the thinktanks of these media group are clueless as to where have the audience and revenue gone.
Nine out of 10 new media projects in the year 2010 have either failed flat or are struggling to make a break even. Indian media market has already seen dot com bubble burst, the TV channels closing down and even some big ticket print media projects failing to make a mark. Some of these projects have failed to get noticed despite of deep pockets of the promoters. On the contrary, there are other media projects, though few and far between, which are doing well despite of working in a low-cost model. This raises a question mark over the business model, brand differentiator and TG loyalty of the project.
All the successful media ventures may be devising their old success stories, but there seem to be a common pattern of almost all the failed ventures. That is their attempt to replicate the model of the existing successful ventures.  After closely examining the evolving media market in the country, we always advise the clients to write their success stories, instead of replicating anybody. This goes true for our own venture Track2Realty as well, which has been conceptualized as a market differentiator in the real estate segment.
It is not that there is any dearth of media ventures in a lucrative sector like the real estate. But where Track2Realty stands out as a market differentiator is the fact that we are neither competing with the marketing supplements of the mainline newspapers, nor are we providing a B2B platform to the industry. For us real estate is newsworthy subject that has been a virgin territory. And we are here to track the real concerns of all the stake holders-realty companies, investors, consultants and the end-users.
The question that many people ask is that whether niche segment is the new potential zone to emerge. With a certain amount of conviction I keep telling the media wannabes that the days of broadcast format is over. Unless one has a few hundred crores with a long time span to get into competitive zone with the large media houses, there is no point to even think of a venture with broadcast format. Providing every bit of news for everybody is something that has been monopolized by the large media institutions. As a consultant I keep telling everybody that even if you have deep pockets, it is always better to channelize that resource on a road that has been less travelled by.
It is our firm belief that while the broadcast format may not work for the new players, narrowcast format brings in more synergy, room for creativity & experiment and connects instantly with the focused target group. The next wave in media is slated to be with the narrowcast format, where one may not be offering everything to everybody, but an exclusive offer for a niche audience connects much better with the desired target group. One may not target million of audience who will surf your news platform once in a while, but an exclusive offer to even thousands of audience will do if your offer is worth visiting twice or thrice a day.
News and for that matter any form of media is also about creating a community around your media vehicle. Perhaps Facebook is the best example, and also an answer as to why people in general spend more time on Facebook than a professional networking platform like the LinkedIn. Both Facebook and LinkedIn are available on the Internet, accessible to everybody worldwide. But while LinkedIn is conceptualized on a broadcast format where you can network globally with anybody on a professional level, you may not end up working together on a given project even if you need services in that given geographical location. This is because this professional networking platform may not bring in like minded professionals on the table.
On the contrary, with Facebook one may not be bothered about millions of users, but in a narrowcast mode one is closely networked, most often with same likes and preferences, with the friends’ list. The medium offers even more focused narrowcasting within the narrowcast in the form of creating a group. Our study on the business model, audience psychograph and emerging pattern clearly suggests that the future belong to such narrowcast format in media.      
Among the three popular modes of media-Print, TV and Internet, the power of the word of mouse is tremendous; but has not been tapped fully because there is a credibility factor that is missing on the net in the absence of any regulation. It is a free for all medium. Columbia law professor in his recent book “The Master Switch” argues that Internet is as powerful as any other communications medium.  He expects to see consolidation and government control over the web. That may be a blessing in disguise as most other media-Print, TV, Radio & Movies, have gone through phases of wild growth and experimentation, eventually settling into a pattern of consolidation, control and credibility.
If Print Media today is seen as the most creditable piece of journalism, it is largely due to the edit control mechanism of the medium. In contrast, Television may attract more eyeballs but edit control is relatively less in a Soundbyte driven medium. Internet media entrepreneurs need to adapt to this reality and reinvent their project into a digiprint format. It is not just the US President Barack Obama who contested the elections on the social networking sites, but across the world even the most conservative governments have started realizing the power of the medium.
China has launched a new search engine of its own to make foray into its 420 million strong net users’ market. Known as Goso.cn, China’s search engine has been aimed at countering the negative reports of the country on rival Google. It has been launched by the country’s largest newspaper the People’s Daily of the ruling Communist party of China. This shows how several countries view development of the internet as part of their national strategy.
Internet is a medium which enables one with a daily budget of even Rs. 10 to practice journalism and other forms of media activity. Internet has cultivated a public vested in its freedom. But then activism and radical openness of the web has to eventually set an organized pattern for the medium. With a bit of regulation, more serious players opting for the medium and the medium itself not just penetrating deep into the demography but also in the psychograph….the future is definitely calling to the digital media.

Should communicators communicate self?

As a communication professional our job is to communicate the message of the clients to the right media vehicle. Right? Well, not always. Communicators are paid to communicate the message of others and the conventional wisdom suggests against becoming the subject themselves. However, there is no code of ethics that refrains a communicator to communicate his own message. Is there any? I have my serious doubts, and unlike traditional journalism where objectivity and detached view point are the overtly pronounced parameters for obvious reasons, the nature of other forms of communication, Advertising & PR does not come in the way of a free flowing symmetrical communication.

The question as to whether a communicator should communicate self or not was posed by a journalist friend to whom I had sent the press release of the global tie-up of TRACK2MEDIA with Heusler PR, Australia. I have no doubts that the journo friend got confused with our going-global press release, since he was into the habit of receiving the releases of the clients from our end. The result was a prompt phone call to ask whether I was serious with it to be treated as the press release or it was meant for mere information.

What seemed to be an innocuous question actually made me introspect as to whether I crossed the ethical lines of the communication business. I also started questioning myself as to whether I had a need to communicate to the world in general and media in particular about self. However, on second thoughts I decided to stick to my inner urge to communicate, even if it is about self. I understand a number of journo and even some PR pros will contest the claim, but the fact of the matter is that a larger understanding of media business and ethics is needed in the given context.

What used to be unethical in old school of communication is no longer valid in today’s competitive media world. Cross channel promotion of media houses, self glorified version of impact of the news stories, and in some cases individual journalists being promoted as brands is an accepted reality today. And hence I firmly believe that the question of ethics and integrity crossing the line comes into debate only when one starts taking the advantage of being into the business. But so long one has a valid argument and newsworthy information; there is no reason why a communicator should not communicate about self.

After all, we communication professionals don’t function in a vacuum and unless we have something relevant to share, the traditional media will not entertain us, even if there is an element of personal friendship involved. It is not self glorification that can translate into media coverage, only by virtue of being in the same trade. Now if I probe the issue a bit deeper, I have the feeling that more than living under an enforced code of ethics on us, we have subconsciously relegated ourselves as mere messengers.

Of course, since we feel shy of becoming the news ourselves, there is a genre of media platforms that have emerged to keep the industry well reported. There are portals like exchange4media and afaqs, catering to the industry with a genuine B2B focus. In the mainstream media, even though the television channels have broke the clutter with their financial clout, PR professionals are still treated like vendors. The moot point is whether we take an offence to it, or subconsciously we accept it as an industry reality.

It is anybody’s guess as to what is the ground reality. Some of the best known communications consulting agencies, even the ones that specialise in helping the corporate world go to public, are privately held companies. It seems the dilemma of communicating self makes them feel shy of coming out with their own public issues. Intent seems to be very much there; otherwise some of them would not have been deemed public limited companies. But it is the conventional school of communication that acts as a deterrent and communicators fail to get a face lift by communicating self.

Thankfully, I belong to the new school of communication, feel proud of my job and the industry and will never feel shy of communicating self. Right time, right message, right media…..that is the professional philosophy of TRACK2MEDIA Consulting.

Why Prabhash Joshi could not be my ideal

On the sad demise of veteran journalist Prabhash Joshi, I find it quite strange, ironic and unfortunate that a whole new breed of journalists have declared him as an ideal and inspirational figure. It seems the new bunch of journalists have all jumped into the profession in the name of following the ideals of Mr Joshi. Had that been the reality, I wonder how come the new face of Indian journalism is so different from what he preached and practiced throughout his life.
When a journalist friend approached me to write an article for an obituary souvenir on Prabhash Joshi, it was much easier for me to take a moral high ground and declare him “My Ideal” too and follow the trend. However, being two generation post Mr Joshi in the business of communication, my conscience does not allow me to drag the name of one of the father figures of the profession as my ideal and continue practicing otherwise, if not altogether the contrary. To me Prabhash Joshi and his brand of journalism have been and will always continue to be an inspiration, yet he could not be my ideal.
Prabhash Joshi belongs to the old school of journalism where respect to the hierarchy and seniority was looked up to. It is not that the lobby and coterie kind of world did not exist in the media during those days. But the stature of Prabhash Joshi was much above that and in him there was always an inspirational figure whom everybody loved. He shaped the careers of many of the journalists but none of them ever became, or were allowed to become, sycophants.
It was always respect for the father figure of the industry who was there to guide the young lot. Such was the leadership qualities of this man that the young lot loved to be scolded, if found with lack of news sense or writing a poor copy. But along with this occasional pulling up to the reporters was an idealist editor who stood firm with his staff even when the Prime Minister himself wanted the journalist to be sacked.
By the time the next generation evolved in the media, the whole world had changed and liberalization had started spreading its wings in the media market as well. No wonder, many of the journalists who at one point of time sweared by the ideals of Mr Joshi started operating in a different manner. Respect for the hierarchy gradually turned into a flow of “yes boss’ from top to bottom. More money into the profession changed the face of journalism for all the wrong reasons and corruption in the industry became an accepted norm.
I remember my first chance encounter with Prabhash Joshi during a seminar at India Habitat Centre. Those were my initial days in journalism and I had heard a lot about him. This was added to the fact that by that time I had also came across very many intimidating editors for whom arrogance was the only yardstick of being a true leader. It was here that the mere body language of Mr Joshi was different; suggesting as to how true leadership is about earning the respect of your peer group and the juniors at the same time.
A soft spoken but full of satirical verses, this doyen of Indian journalism had a friendly chat with me. No intimidating body language and no editors’ attitude; yet there was an aura around that commanded respect which most of the editors under whom I have worked could not have managed to evoke. During the course of seminar on Media Ethics and Practices while his one-liner verses was all satirical, I felt that deep beneath a critical journalist’s tongue lies a dejected man who was not comfortable with the emerging realities of the profession. And he never minced words too as far as his detaste for the new brand of journalism is concerned.
At a time when the media world was looking for greener pastures and newspapers were “Made in Delhi and not Published”, Private Treaty was signed with the corporate sector and news space was being sold openly, Prabhash Joshi was among the first to openly condemn this overt commercialization. Sadly many of the Managing Editors who otherwise swear by his ideals and brand of journalism were too busy with their respective management in suggesting as to how more revenue could be generated.
That is the reason I have no remorse in accepting the fact that Prabhash Joshi could not be my ideal. Two generations post his era, the profession and its practitioners had changed. Neither could I get the professional upbringing that had been the forte of Prabhash Joshi and his ilk, nor did I fit into this next generation of journalism where the system demanded that being “yes man” was the first step to stardom. With a background of student politics, trade unionism in blood and a radical approach in politics, all I knew was to be a rebel for a cause. I have doubts whether I could ever have been an asset to a disciplinarian editor in Prabhash Joshi.
Yes, Prabhash Joshi has not been my ideal, nor do I pretend that to be. I just wish that the journalistic world would have followed his ideals, my professional upbringing would have been under this legend, he would not have been that involved in cricket that caused his heart attack or India would have played better on that day…….My wish list is a bit too long. But then had wishes been horses.