NAA Chairman: ‘Newspapers Will Survive’
- by July 15, 2002
That’s the message from William Dean Singleton, vice chairman and CEO of MediaNews Group Inc. and chairman of the Newspaper Association of America. Singleton, whose company owns newspapers throughout the United States, spoke Sunday to a joint session of the Newspaper Association’s Connections 2002 Classified Conference and Research Conference in Denver.
“The sooner we start acting like a technology industry, the sooner we will become one, and the better our future will be,” he said in prepared remarks.
Singleton acknowledged that some media critics are writing the newspapers’ obituary. But he wasn’t one of them. “We have more opportunity in front of us than any time in our history,” he said.
He said newspapers are the most modern, most high-tech and most successful communications business, thanks to their success on the Internet. Far from changes in technology making the core business obsolete, Singleton predicted newspapers would continue to lead as long as they use technology to strengthen their business. More than 90% of the country’s 1,400 daily newspapers have websites. Recent data shows that eight of the top 20 sites are newspapers.
“We have stopped taking our position for granted. We are focusing our resources. We are making the commitment. And now nobody is in a better position today to win via the Internet than we are,” he said.
Singleton believes newspapers have two goals: To protect its franchise and then build upon it. Classified advertising posted double-digit gains last year in automotive and real estate, yet fell dramatically in employment. Singleton said He said newspapers now have to fuse its longstanding dominance in classified with technology. In new areas, Singleton sees new channels to connect readers – including wireless and cellular phones – as good ways to expand. “The real issue is rethinking and rebuilding our business to ensure our place.
