OFF THE TOP
You might have heard: Local newsrooms across the U.S. have dropped their paywalls for coronavirus coverage (Poynter)
But did you know: Despite audiences overwhelmingly focusing on free coronavirus stories, publishers are still seeing a rise in subscriptions (Local News Initiative)
The Seattle Times and the Tampa Bay Times are seeing digital subscriptions rise by two or three times the usual rate. The Denver Post, on some days, has seen digital subscriptions growth increase fourfold. Other local newsrooms that have dropped their paywalls for coronavirus coverage are reporting the same higher-than-usual subscriptions and much lower churn rates. It’s too early, however, to tell if those subscribers will stick around once the pandemic subsides. “You’re probably talking about fairly deeply discounted introductory rates, so how many of those people will stick and all that kind of thing would remain to be seen,” said media analyst Rick Edmonds.
+ Noted: First Draft announces U.S. 2020 Local News Fellows, who will train journalists and the public on combating misinformation online (First Draft News); The Facebook Journalism Project, Lenfest Institute and Local Media Association announce first round of grants supporting local newsrooms’ coronavirus coverage (Facebook Journalism Project); News aggregator app Flipboard expands local coverage, including coronavirus updates, to 12 more U.S. metros (TechCrunch)
API UPDATE
In this week’s edition of ‘Factually’
Coronavirus deniers spread a deadly message, why falsehoods are so hard to control in WhatsApp, and how China is pushing coronavirus disinformation. Factually is a weekly newsletter produced by API and the Poynter Institute that covers fact-checking and misinformation.
TRY THIS AT HOME
How local news outlets are making sure critical information reaches everyone (Twitter, @madbair)
Local news outlets across the U.S. are using creative ways to reach communities that are often cut off from traditional media by language or tech barriers. In New York, Documented is partnering with community health orgs and immigration advocates to answer questions from Spanish-speaking readers via WhatsApp and Facebook Live. In California, Mission Local is delivering updates in Spanish via text. And in North Carolina, the Charlotte Journalism Collaborative is letting residents guide their coverage by connecting with them on- and offline.
+ How Splice quickly pulled together an online streaming event (Nieman Lab); How journalism students can hone their mobile journalism skills from home (RTDNA)
OFFSHORE
The Canadian government is planning a $30 million ad buy to support struggling media (National Observer)
The government announced this week that it plans to spend $30 million on an advertising campaign to raise awareness about COVID-19, money that will go primarily to Canadian media organizations to help sustain them through the pandemic. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also said the government is closer to implementing the long-promised tax credits for Canadian newspapers. However, many Canadian media organizations, some of which have already begun laying off staff, have criticized the measures as too little, too late.
+ BBC News suspends 450 job cuts to ensure coronavirus coverage (BBC)
OFFBEAT
How COVID-19 ad keyword blocking starves the news media during a global pandemic (BuzzFeed News)
Fearful of their ads appearing alongside grim coronavirus reports, advertisers are drastically reducing their spending with news media organizations even as readership on those sites has soared. Coronavirus is now the most-blocked keyword, recently surpassing “Trump,” according to Integral Ad Science, an ad verification company. The impact of ad-blocking on news orgs’ bottom lines has been swift and brutal, with many having to lay off staff or cut their pay to make up for the losses. David Cohen, the president of industry group Interactive Advertising Bureau, said that blocking ads on coronavirus content threatens public safety. “Solid, fact-based reporting educates, informs, and saves lives,” he wrote in Business Insider. “Every dollar you spend on credible news sites helps save lives.”
UP FOR DEBATE
News media sounded the alarm for months — but few listened (The Conversation)
National news outlets in the U.S. have been rigorously reporting on COVID-19 since the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, but even as the virus spread to the U.S. and began prompting the closures of schools and businesses nationwide, causing millions of Americans to lose their jobs, and entire states to issue stay-at-home orders, polls have found that a significant number of Americans still believe that the media is blowing the threat out of proportion. Americans’ increasing tendency to view the news through a politically ideological lens means that many are highly skeptical of the information they’re seeing. In a survey gauging Americans’ most trusted sources on coronavirus, journalists came dead last, after 14 other groups, including “my co-workers” and “my employer’s CEO.”
RESEARCH
Americans who primarily get news through social media are most likely to have seen made-up news about COVID-19 (Pew Research Center)
A new survey from Pew shows that people whose most common pathway to political and election news is through social media are less likely than others to be closely following that coverage — but more likely to say they’ve been exposed to misinformation about the pandemic. They are also more likely than those who primarily get their news from other means to say that news sources have exaggerated the threat posed by the virus.
FOR THE WEEKEND
+ How photojournalists are documenting the coronavirus crisis (Wired)
+ Lessons from coronavirus coverage for the next health crisis story — climate change (Nieman Reports)
The post Need to Know: March 27, 2020 appeared first on American Press Institute.
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