Future Journalism Monetization Strategies: Exploring Ways to Fund Tomorrow's Headlines at Scoopcamp
On September 8, 2022, the Innovation Conference for Media, Scoopcamp, took place at the Beachclub Del Mar on the Hamburg Landungsbrücken. The event brought together industry leaders to discuss the future of journalism, with a focus on shifting perspective back to an orientation towards the interests and needs of users.
Dr. Carsten Brosda, Hamburg's Senator for Culture and Media, highlighted the tension field in which journalism operates today. He emphasized the importance of participation, value to people, and economic and social value. Nico Wilfer, Chief Product Officer at the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, discussed specific implementation examples, such as the use of artificial intelligence to generate user data and calculate the performance of articles, and the use of "predictive AI" to recommend whether an article should be placed behind or in front of the paywall.
Individualization of news products was a recurring theme, with the necessity of allowing users to choose which articles and which authors they want to read. Data can help to better categorize the interests of users, enabling a more personalized and engaging experience.
Joachim Dreykluft, a member of the management of NOZ Digital, and Jan Hildebrandt, founder and CEO of the Eimsbüttler Nachrichten, discussed the role of journalism within a democracy. They stated that democracy needs professional journalism, and that the willingness to pay for quality journalism is present in large parts of the population. However, payment models need to be adjusted, and especially the sometimes high price differences between providers should be reduced.
The need for transparency in media was also addressed, with more transparency contributing to trust in the media. Jack Riley, Vice President of Business Development & Revenue Strategy at BuzzFeed News and HuffPost, was presented with the Scoop Award. He advocated for addressing the younger generation and their usage behavior, and emphasized the importance of digital creators and video formats in the future of the industry.
Luciana Cardoso, deputy chair of the News Product Alliance (NPA), discussed various monetization options in journalism, including memberships, branded content, video formats, sponsorship, custom content for companies, and events.
Jack Riley's role at BuzzFeed News and HuffPost was not specified in the available search results. Journalists themselves need to reflect on their role and explain it to readers. Differentiated reporting is necessary against the backdrop of an increasing information overload and a heated discussion culture.
In conclusion, Scoopcamp 2022 emphasized the importance of user-centric journalism, transparency, and quality content in the digital age. The conference provided a platform for industry leaders to discuss and share their insights on the future of journalism, setting a direction for the industry to follow.
