So, now that the Daily is out there, who is it for? Who will read this bold new experiment in journalism and why?
First, let me state in no uncertain terms that we just saw a sea change in journalism as its practiced online. Murdoch’s deep pockets have pushed through something publishers have tried to do for about two years now – namely create a compelling, interactive news source for tablet users. If I may be so bold, I would equate the efforts by Popular Science and titles that previously attempted to move to the iPad as the 1.0, pre-Internet CD-ROM days. The content was static and the old methods – commissioned text, carefully laid out on a page, released monthly at a premium price – are now over. That said, I wouldn’t wager the Daily will be the best or most popular of these new “streaming” newspapers but I do suspect that for the first few years it will be the most popular.
First, the Daily features a fire-and-forget subscription. Once the initial two-week free period is over, fans of the daily will be able to pay $40 for a daily newspaper put out by an arguably strong team of journalists. The Daily seems like the sort of newspaper you read on the couchafter work and not on the train before work and the images, design, and Murdoch’s statements about the “wit and humor” of the stories point to stories inspired by the blogosphere rather than the AP Style Guide.
Full story: Who is The Daily for?