A follow-up to yesterday's post about the deathwatch for offline media:

The (London) Sunday Times has an article today about a brewing battle between minority New York Times shareholders and the Sulzburger-Ochs family, which has controlled the paper since 1896. The dissidents want The New York Times Company to move more aggressively toward online distribution of news content, claiming that the slow pace currently being pursued by management is putting the long-term future of the paper and its other holdings at risk. In the article, reporter Dominic Rushe describes a familiar situation at North American newspapers:

"Readers are migrating online but advertising revenues are failing to keep up with the shift. Last month the company announced 100 layoffs at the 1,332-strong New York Times newsroom."

Rushe also quotes journalist and blogger Jeff Jarvis, who advocates big changes at the New York Times and even more dramatic changes at the Boston Globe, also owned the The New York Times Company. Jarvis described the changes he would recommend on his blog BuzzMachine on Saturday:

"It clearly should be more online than print — soon or immediately exclusively online. It must focus on great reporting. It should be open to all media. It should become the host of opinion and discussion about all issues — which will be tough for them. The Times will have hearty competition from both the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal but it should bravely leap ahead and recognize that Dow Jones management is scared of change (thus their mewling and successful efforts to convince Rupert Murdoch not to take down the pay wall . . . for now). It will also have competition from international news brands coming to America: the Guardian, the BBC, and possibly others."

One of the biggest assets any news media organization has is its pool of journalistic talent. The reporters, researchers, photographers, producers, and editors who report the news are hard to replace, and their years of experience, resources and contacts are even more so. While online freelancers and bloggers (such as myself) can add to the virtual conversation by expressing opinions and observations, few bloggers have the access to the same resources and contacts as professional journalists, nor do we have the same experience. The New York Times Company has to decide where the winds of change are taking the paper before technology and financial constraints make the decisions for them, at the risk of losing more of their prized assets - experienced, professional journalists.

The battle for the business direction - and perhaps the soul - of the New York Times will begin next month. As Dominic Rushe says in his Sunday Times article, "It is shaping up to be a spectacular battle."