Like all news media, local TV news is battling to stay relevant and profitable in the face of a quickly evolving audience and media landscape. TV has always been a tough, fast-paced business, and now more so than ever before. Local newsrooms face a 24-7 news cycle while their viewership decreases and newsrooms shrink. Basically, they're expected to deliver more news, on smaller budgets with fewer resources. With this dynamic, it's easy to see why people feel that the quality of local news has diminished. Under these circumstances, something has to give.
That said, there are steps that local TV news can take to start moving in the right direction. Steps have already been taken by all of our local players to become more than just TV news, but a news platform that exists online and in broadcast. It's a necessary step that has been taken with some trepidation because, frankly, the money isn't in online news and news is a business like any other. Online sources are killing the local media cash cow and no one has figured out how to make up the gap. Hyperlocal news quite simply doesn't make money. An interesting look at the market can be seen in this Stranger article. In a world where even low-overhead startups can't make online hyperlocal media profitable, there isn't much hope for traditional media. That said, the key to making local TV news relevant is finding a way to stay profitable with an increase in demand for local online content.
The next issue that local TV news needs to face may not have hit home yet for the public, but I see as an upcoming battle based on my experience working in media relations. This is the battle for trust. The cracks in the wall between paid media and news are beginning to show. Some local news shows are becoming increasingly "pay to play." PR professionals can increasingly buy clients media coverage in local news and, while technically these relationships are revealed, the segments look and feel like traditional news. This development is understandable, as the business side of TV news leans on the editorial staff to make these sacrifices to stay profitable, but it's also dangerous. One step too far in blending paid content and news will likely result in a backlash from viewers that local news can't afford. Serious thought needs to be put into how to approach this dilemma for the industry to survive.
Another change I would like to see from local outlets is a less-is-more approach to TV journalism. Our local TV news outlets already have unique specialties, strengths and weaknesses. KIRO heavily emphasizes crime reporting. KING has greater resources than the other stations in market and takes the lead on weather reporting, traffic, as well as "soft" news through New Day Northwest and Evening Magazine. KOMO probably has the strongest online presence through their well-maintained network of community blogs and an engaged social media fanbase. KCPQ is also pretty strong online, and while they have fewer resources than KING or KOMO, they tend to focus on fewer, deeper, stories that are less time sensitive than their competitors.
I would like to see these outlets play even more heavily to their strengths. One of the most basic principals of economics is that specialization leads to increased output and it's time for local TV news to embrace that concept. I don't need 4 stations to provide me with weather, crime, tech, sports, hyperlocal news etc., I need just one or two reliable and strong sources for each. In a media landscape where viewers can increasingly pick what they watch piecemeal, rather than sitting down and watching a single 5:00 broadcast, there is room for stations to become specialists, rather than having to deliver all the news a person needs.
Change is difficult and frightening, especially in a time when the wrong move could strike a heavy blow to already struggling newsrooms, but I believe that local TV news can make the jump and become stronger for it.
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