One of the few positive developments in the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada has been the recognition by both the federal government and the public that journalism is an “essential service.”There are few things more important than distributing information by a wide variety of media so audiences can make the right choices to keep everyone safe and healthy.Yet that crucial mission is under grave threat as the media industry has lost advertising revenue at an even greater pace than over the past decade, leading to more than 500 layoffs and even some outright closures.A recent Nanos Research poll found that a clear majority of Canadians believe the federal government should treat the media crisis as an emergency.Recently, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he recognizes the importance of the issue.“It is more important than ever that Canadians have access to the latest news and information,” Trudeau said in March at one of his daily news conferences.“To ensure that journalists can continue to do this vital work, our government is announcing new measures to support them.”Media leaders, however, were not impressed.“We hoped he was going to announce something new,” said John Hinds, president and CEO of News Media Canada, whose association represents print and digital news media members across the country.“Instead, what (the government) did was rehash a couple of announcements that were very good with dealing with the crisis we were facing a year ago, but have nothing to do with the (pandemic-related cash crunch) crisis we're facing today.”Further federal funding can only help the effort to provide the best information possible to the widest audience possible.But at this critical time, it's imperative that the government, the media and the broader digital industry use this opportunity to build for the future, not try to save a dying past.They all need to cooperate in new ways, abandon old battles and step briskly into the future of media, which will be increasingly digital.I believe that this crisis has sealed the doom of the printed newspaper, which has been in a slow death spiral for many years.Almost everyone in the business knows that the future for journalism is digital, rather than print. The key reason for failure to move more swiftly up to now has been the fact that print advertising far surpassed digital revenue.Now, that's gone.This crisis – terrifying as it may be – is the perfect opportunity to move from the daily newspaper delivery to a brighter digital world.Don't lay off journalists. Don't cut back on news creation. Get rid of the high-cost legacy infrastructure. Don't use your precious resources on print plants, pulp, and door-to-door delivery. Use the money saved to build your digital products, preferably in conjunction with the digital giants. Hire more journalists.Yes, some major media outlets can survive for a while with a print product – The Globe and Mail and other business publications, as well as specialty publishers with a niche audience. Some others, in small- to medium-sized communities might want to look at creating regional information hubs that go beyond traditional news to civic and neighbourhood informationThe need to act soon should be obvious to all.In a recent ipoltics.ca article, Bob Cox, publisher of The Winnipeg Free Press, said revenue at The Free Press has fallen more than 30 per cent since mid-March, and he has heard of revenue dropping 40 per cent elsewhere in the business.Industry players don't think advertising revenue will return for at least a year after the pandemic – if at all.I think it's more likely to be not at all. Why?
- More than half of all employed Canadians are now working from home. In an era of stay-at-home orders, we are all making more and more online purchases, including necessities, rather than in-person. There's every chance that a return to pre-COVID “normal” is a long way away. Therefore, this new way of life could be here to stay.
- There are few signs that current “stay-at-home” restrictions will be substantially eased at any point soon.
- Experts predict another wave of the pandemic in the fall – even if we have a brief respite this summer.
- Experts also expect the world will not have a widely available vaccine until early 2021, at least for the kind of mass distribution required to get us back to whatever the new “normal” is.
- The federal government should make further funding to journalism contingent on a deal between the main media players and the digital giants. Ottawa maintained, when it first announced the aid program that it did not want the funding to go to saving dying legacy platforms.
- The print media is in no position to bargain. At the same time, Ottawa can also twist the arms of the digital giants by cancelling any threats to impose specific taxes on them – IF they fully partner up with, and pay reasonable fees to the journalistic content creators. The digital giants face threats of such taxes in Europe and Australia, among other places.
- The final deal would look something like this: The content creators would move much of their existing digital products either directly onto the digital giants or would strike a deal to sell a stream of their products to the digital giants. The content creators would get a steady revenue stream to able them to rebuild, to keep journalists on staff and to continue their mission to serve the public. The digital giants would get a steady content stream and would live without the threat of government action.