Let's Get Digital

A white paper offers an in-depth look at incorporating e-editions into NIE.

By Jim Abbott

First Published: Fall 2007

The Foundation is pleased to announce the publication of the first-ever complete handbook on electronic editions and NIE programs.

“Digital NIE: A Guide to Using E-editions With NIE Programs,” a 60-page white paper, provides step-by-step directions for launching a digital NIE program. The entire publication, prepared with assistance and insights from a task force of NIE professionals and newspaper executives, can be downloaded at no cost or read online at www.naafoundation.org.

A POWERFUL TOOL

Newspapers across the country have strong ties to a hard-to-reach market: primary, middle-school and high-school students.

Foundation research has shown that active NIE programs reach more than 40 percent of all school-age children in the United States. Local newspapers have worked closely with schools to develop quality educational materials that are aligned with local, state and national standards.

Further Foundation research has revealed that students using newspapers in class score significantly better on tests than students who do not use them. Over time, the partnership between newspapers and schools has become a practical way for teachers to supplement dated textbooks, to engage students in learning and to add a sense of reality to the classroom. Teachers, students and parents have embraced this partnership.

In addition, local businesses, newspaper subscribers and individuals have been willing to share the cost of providing this valuable program through sponsorships. Business leaders are impressed that the NIE program has a ready contact with a generation that spent $179 billion in 2006, according to “Targeting Teens 2007” from the NAA Business Research & Development Department.

Yet newspapers today face a rapidly changing audience. One part of that audience, the NIE audience of young people, is changing even more rapidly than some of the older constituencies. A great deal of research has been done on young readers, and it is clear that they see the newspaper as a valuable, reliable and comprehensive source of information. However, the newspaper is not delivered in ways and at times that are attractive to them.

Electronic editions of the newspaper are powerful tools for engaging these young, multitasking individuals in our products. The transition from a traditional NIE program to a digital NIE program, while it poses some challenges, is a natural extension of the current partnership between newspapers and schools.

With plenty of Internet-ready mobile devices to choose from, young people these days can be connected at all times and in all places. It is vital for newspapers to reach them with quality information at the time and place and in the format of their choosing. It is critical to brand the newspaper, however it is delivered, as a reliable and available source of up-to-date information. Digital NIE programs are one way to introduce the young generation to the realities of the future newspaper.

Research done by the Foundation in 2004 called “Growing Lifelong Readers” showed that 62 percent of all 18- to 34-year-olds who remembered using the newspaper in school are current newspaper readers. Those surveyed also said they were making their first media usage decisions at age 13.

“Lifelong Readers: The Role of Teen Content,” the Foundation’s 2006 research study, found that youth content in newspapers is another factor in driving future readership. Of the young adults ages 18-24 who read both the local newspaper and the teen section as teens, nearly eight in 10 (78 percent) said they read the weekday newspaper in the last week. Half (50 percent) said they read it yesterday.

For these reasons and more, it is imperative for newspapers to invest in programs that will brand their products with students at the earliest possible opportunity. Electronic editions of newspapers, and their inclusion in quality NIE programs, offer many benefits in a branding strategy. Electronic editions can engage the “wired” generation in many ways that print editions cannot.

Many teens and young adults report that they look to the newspaper because it “gives us something to talk about with our friends.” They actively seek news, but they do not tend to be consistent readers. E-editions, with the fast and easy access they offer to youth sections and other content of specific interest to young people, are the perfect resource for them.

E-editions are environmentally friendly – a major plus with this “green” generation of young readers. Also, parents and teachers like e-editions because they provide a safe way for students to explore the world around them.

For newspapers, electronic delivery of NIE may result in significant cost savings. Digital NIE does involve an investment; however, the savings are likely to be greater.

Suggestions in this white paper can be accomplished at newspapers that currently have e-editions, or at newspapers that are looking to start e-editions. In all cases, support of top management is vital in the financial and policy decisions associated with e-editions.

This white paper is designed to act as a guideline for newspapers seeking to grow the youth audience by providing information through a cost-effective technological format that appeals to young readers. Search engines such as Google and Yahoo! have helped train a generation that “searches” for information rather than “scans” through newspaper pages to acquire knowledge of unfamiliar topics. Exact-replica electronic newspapers provide both “searchable” and “scannable” ways of accessing information, thus promoting a deeper one-on-one relationship between news content providers and readers.

E-edition proponents recognize the potential of this relationship and have invested accordingly in research and development. Development is occurring at a rapid rate. Costs, which once required a capital investment, have dropped significantly over the past few years, while print edition production and newsprint costs continue to increase year after year.

The intensified interest in low-cost electronic media, combined with the growing production and distribution expenditures associated with print editions, make the e-edition a viable alternative for increasing newspaper readership among the youth audience while reducing overall costs.

This white paper is not intended to be prescriptive, but rather a guide to the questions and decisions a newspaper must consider to enter the realm of digital NIE. We encourage readers to use the portions that apply to their newspapers, and then to adapt or disregard the rest.

INSIDE THE GUIDE

When discussing electronic editions, digital NIE or any other Web-based delivery of news, it is critical to understand the terminology and to use it correctly and consistently. As a result, the digital NIE white paper opens with a list of terms and definitions. 

Other sections include:

• Benefits and Challenges of Digital NIE – For those considering a digital NIE program, an examination of its potential impact on schools and newspapers is a good place to start.
• Audit Bureau of Circulations Issues – Pricing, licensing, sponsorships, college resident copies and other relevant ABC requirements are detailed.
• First Steps – Insights into the planning and development of a digital NIE program are offered.
• Launching Digital NIE – This section provides guidance on the best ways to introduce teachers to a digital NIE program and discusses some pitfalls to avoid.
• Promoting E-edition Use – Samples and examples can help newspapers develop their own promotional blueprints.
• Teacher Training for E-edition Use – By “teaching the teachers,” newspapers can make the most of their digital NIE efforts.
• Teacher Curriculum for Digital NIE – Some current lesson plans can be adapted for digital NIE, but an investment in new material is called for as well.
• Other Opportunities: Extending Digital NIE – Opportunities abound for using the e-edition to bring extra services and programs to teachers.

 The appendix features a formula developed by Gannett Co. of McLean, Va., to calculate the true savings (cost) of a digital NIE program over current expenditures. In addition, the appendix contains promotional materials from some of the vendors that help local newspapers to create e-editions.

Above all, remember this key finding of the NAA Foundation Digital NIE Task Force: A goal of making the NIE program 100 percent electronic is not realistic. Digital NIE is likely to increase NIE circulation, but there always will be a need for print copies.

E-editions are the future for newspapers, and the Foundation is ready to show NIE programs how to lead the way into this new arena.