Small publishing houses around the country are seeking new ways of selling advertising to ensure the survival of their print businesses in an era when more and more people get news online.
Small publishing houses around the country are seeking new ways of selling advertising to ensure the survival of their print businesses in an era when more and more people get news online.
There was an almost palpable sense of urgency about finding new strategies at an Association of Independent Publishers (AIP) conference held in Boksburg, Gauteng last weekend.
Keynote speakers at the plenary session, including the Public Protector Thuli Madonsela and Communications Minister Yunus Carrim, focused on the importance of community media, freedom of expression and certain political issues.
But most publishers were interested in the economic sustainability of publishing.
When there were parallel sessions where delegates could choose between an editorial or a business session – those interested in the rands and cents of survival outnumbered the editorial sessions by five to one.
Even a topical session run by well-known journalist, Raymond Joseph, about smart editorial preparation for next year's national elections was overshadowed by a session on how to market your newspaper.
Several speakers, including Madonsela, expressed concerns about the lack of diversity in the media.
She said, "It is important that we promote freedom of the media and independence of the media, however, it is important that the media represents all views in society, hence diversity of the media is important." Her statement led to extensive discussions about languages and particularly about how much effort should be put into promoting indigenous languages.
Carrim said that "the independent media, and particularly community media, gives expression to voices that will otherwise never be heard".
There were also concerns raised about the influence of advertisers on the independent media. Carrim said that government devoted 30% of its advertising budget to community newspapers. Madonsela called for the protection of community newspapers against undue influence from advertisers.
