A popular meme on the right is that liberalism is losing newspapers their circulation. If it was ever true, it's not true now.The slimmed down circulations have left papers with their core audience: middlebrows who buy bestsellers; who learn about trends from feature articles; who buy things based on lists and rankings; who search out tips on what to eat, to wear, and of course what to believe.
These middlebrow masses, listening to NPR, watching PBS, reading their newspapers and newsweeklies, are the bread and butter of an entire sector of the economy. The corporations who own and run big daily newspapers are very interested in pleasing this core audience. Expect papers to become more liberal as outlying demographics fall away. As costs are trimmed, one must serve the essential reader.
This dynamic is showcased in the changes happening at the newsweeklies Time and Newsweek. It's interesting to hear editors describe their patrons:
Meacham [a Newsweek editor] , wearing a dark sweater in his office overlooking Central Park, says that "we don't edit with the idea that there is a poor and uninformed reader out there who somehow needs illumination." He sees his audience as "the virtual Beltway," which he defines as people who watch Sunday talk shows, read newspapers and buy hardcover books.
Stengel [a Time editor], wearing a dark sweater in his office with a view of the Hudson River, says his philosophy, especially online, is "news for smart people. . . . We are arguably the best-known news brand in the world, and we want to leverage that."
Teaching point: Smart people buy hardcover books.
You have to translate "smart" here as brand-conscious consumers "who think they are smart," e.g. people of limited culture who are compensating with "must read," "must see," and "must hear," consumption. These tend to be high achievers, woefully overspecialized, whose hardcovers adorn some a prominent coffee table or bookshelf.
I remember during the last campaign, former Time editor Strobe Talbot's special friend, Hillary Clinton, stumbled over the pronunciation of President Medvedev's name settling on national TV for "Whatever." Mr. Whatever. Mrs. Clinton is that reader newsweeklies and newspapers must hold on to - someone not likely to have ever heard Medvedev's name in natural conversation, someone relying heavily on a trusted guide, an interpreter to help negotiate politics, culture, art, and technology.
Consider ever-increasing leftiness the beginnings of a long circulation drive:
Stengel says his goal is to "make Time lead the conversation, not follow it. To speak stronger with a point of view. To mix more analysis with reporting. Not to ask questions, but to answer them on the cover"Any attempt to shame news organs into professionalism by references to their conduct during the Obama-McCain race misses the changes taking place.
This is "the new normal." "Professionalism" means serving the news corporation's customers better.
