Since everyone is down on media companies these days, let’s run through what’s good news about many of them. 1) Our democracy may have crumbled this year had NYT, WaPo & CNN not existed, incredibly important role of all three as we end 2017.
Yes Vice and Buzzfeed may have missed targets BUT both are past the stage of escape velocity & have a long future. And doing important journalistic work in between their main body of work.
Subscriptions look like a reasonable part of media’s future, as a section of people become more aware of the fragility of media & importance of supporting selected set of them.
Audio journalism became a real thing. Podcasts have hit the mainstream, and allow another way for media to be built.
Murdoch is getting old and likely selling off everything.
Male patriarchy & privilege in media is finally getting a big dent in it, though hopes of it ending once and for all is still a bit of a long term dream.
Next week about 30 vertical media company founders are gathering in NYC, each one of their companies growing fast with little money raised & almost all of us profitable, doing deep meaningful work & a big part of the lives of those who care about them.
High-energy high-metabolism media startups like Axios & Cheddar are making early dents in media landscape. And existing ones like TheDailyBeast & others are finding renewed purpose & energy.
The seminal magazines for the last century New Yorker & The Atlantic are still as seminal as ever and likely to be so well into this century.
The jig is up on platforms and despite their death grip, that may be the best news of all in media.
