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Rupert Murdoch Plans a Digital Newspaper For the US

Hugh Pickens writes "The Guardian reports that Rupert Murdoch plans to launch a digital newspaper in the US geared specifically to younger readers and to digital outlets such as the iPad and mobile phones. The paper, as yet unnamed, will pool the huge editorial muscle of Murdoch's combined holdings within News Corporation, which include the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post and the financial wire service Dow Jones, as well as his newspapers in the UK and Australia. Earlier this month, Murdoch said of the iPad: 'It's a real game-changer in the presentation of news,' adding 'We'll have young people reading newspapers.'"

15 of 237 comments (clear)

  1. Game changer by Concerned+Onlooker · · Score: 4, Funny

    Rupert Murdoch: Dragging us into the 20th century.

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    http://www.rootstrikers.org/
    1. Re:Game changer by FriendlyLurker · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Obviously his company & friends are getting worried that their grip is failing to bend the hearts and minds of American young'uns to their liking, at least like it used to (PDF).

    2. Re:Game changer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Why is it that you assume only FOX News spews propaganda?

      I didn't see that anywhere in his message. Why do you assume that he assumes that only FOX News spews propaganda? Or do you think that as long as other people do it too, it doesn't matter (how old are you)? Or do you feel every post about Fox (or Google, Microsoft, Apple, BP, whoever) should end with a line saying "The following other companies, governments or organisations also do bad things..." with a long list?

    3. Re:Game changer by zblack_eagle · · Score: 5, Informative

      It's kind of funny how "Conservatives" like to preach that "Liberals" don't understand Economics 101, yet in their supposed worship of the (theoretical) free market they're quite happy to ignore instances of market failure, such as natural monopolies, externalities and the like.

    4. Re:Game changer by cgenman · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Does anyone else do it to the same degree as FOX news? Has another TV channel cut around a speech to make a conservative look like they're saying something that was the exact opposite of the point of the speech? Does Martin Bashir cut off the mic his guests if they say things he doesn't like? Does MSNBC give its reporters an explicit ultimatum to promote a particular point of view or risk your job?

    5. Re:Game changer by Alien+Being · · Score: 5, Insightful

      And does any other individual have the ability to spread his lies to 1/3 of the worldwide population? Rupert Murdoch is a fucking menace.

  2. "We'll have young people reading newspapers." by DWMorse · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "We'll have young people reading newspapers."

    Not till you tear down that Pay wall, Mr. Murdoch.

    --
    There's a spot in User Info for World of Warcraft account names? Really?
    1. Re:"We'll have young people reading newspapers." by LambdaWolf · · Score: 4, Insightful

      My thoughts exactly. Murdoch seems to be hell-bent on capturing some revenue per reader on a subscription model, regardless of how poorly this is doomed to work on the Internet. No matter how good the content is or even how low the price is, no paywall-based news site will be more attractive than the convenient "point browser at URL, get page" model of Murdoch's many competitors.

      Really, it's the same mindset as the RIAA/MPAA companies who are ignominiously featured on Slashdot so often. They have a pre-Internet business model that allows them to get paid per copy of their product, and rather than accept that it won't survive a new technological environment where anything can be copied and transmitted around the world for free, they keep trying to hammer their outdated but profitable square peg into its new round hole with awkward technical and legislative "solutions." The good news about Murdoch's new project is that, unlike DRM and the DMCA, paywalled newspapers are easy to just ignore.

      --
      "This algorithm runs in constant time. Come on, 2,147,483,648 is a constant..."
  3. If there's one thing Murdoch knows, it's kids. by Spazntwich · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Check out the youthful demographics Fox News attracts...

    And he's sure to only increase the popularity of his empire with our generation as he attempts to sue Skype for having the same three letters in it as his other news organization that nobody under 25 has heard of.

  4. Everyone who thinks this will work... by mooingyak · · Score: 5, Funny

    raise your hand. What, no one can hear me? IF YOU THINK THIS WILL WORK, RAISE YOUR HAND! Is this thing on?

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    William of Ockham had no beard. The most likely explanation is that it was chewed off by squirrels every morning.
  5. Re:Good luck... by TheRaven64 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Can someone persuade Murdoch to buy FaceBook? I can't think of a better way of killing it...

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    I am TheRaven on Soylent News
  6. Re:What's left unsaid by ScottForbes · · Score: 5, Funny

    Granted, professional journalism does cost money, but what does this have to do with Rupert Murdoch?

  7. Problem: young people don't read newspapers by Todd+Knarr · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Young people don't read newspapers. Not in the way Murdoch's thinking, at least. They don't start on page 1 and read through to the end. And they don't compile a list of subjects and read consistently on those subjects for months at a time. They get a sudden interest in a particular subject, search for stories about that specific subject right now, skim them and maybe read a few of the most interesting ones, then go on to other things until another subject piques their interest. This is why Google's so popular: it makes it easy to do exactly that. If Murdoch doesn't accept that, he's simply going to be passed over yet again.

  8. What's the point? by PPH · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Murdoch's product is best suited for housebreaking puppies or wrapping fish. Neither of which work well with an iPad.

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    Have gnu, will travel.
  9. Haven't you noticed his travelling show? by dbIII · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Here's a brief rundown of what I think he's been trying to achieve with all the noise over the past three years. He's pushing hard to have government run media sites (eg. BBC) cut back (with some success) and pushing hard to have index sites like google tied up in court after weird new IP laws are drafted. That will leave nothing but blogs and his paywall sites. He can play this game since he doesn't really have anything to lose with his newspapers - they already bleed money.
    I suppose the business model is:
    talk to governments about IP laws and brang google as pirates, then take the money google would normally get.
    The Murdoch press and media already had a HUGE beatup over google collecting wifi information and had some success in changing public and government opinions about google. He's also been speaking everywhere he can get anyone to listen about how the net is a denizen of theives and we should all be restricted to paid content or jobs will be lost - or something along those lines, check your local Murdoch paper for details. He has more influence than anyone here would like, understands the net more than many here (he had an ISP in 1993 FFS and has always listened to experts) but doesn't care if he breaks it so long as he can get money from the pieces.