Consult
Register for Free
Private access
Law policies
Fiscal policies
Collective agreements
Paris, 3 March 2004
For immediate release
Editors from newspapers around the world now have a new on-line destination
to discuss and debate the issues that concern them : www.editorsweblog.org.
The new "weblog" from the World Editors Forum is a virtual "meeting hall"
for editors from different countries and cultures, said Bertrand Pecquerie,
Director of the WEF, which is the organisation of the World Association of
Newspapers that represents senior news executives.
"I consider the Editors Weblog as an intranet in the editors' community," he
said. "Every day, we have to provide them with real solutions on how to
manage their newsrooms. It is obvious that a cooperative weblog will help
the community of our members: the working editors."
Go to http://wef.blogs.com/about.html for more about the site and to
www.editorsweblog.org to read the postings and participate in the
discussions (You can also write directly to Bertrand Pecquerie,
bpecquerie@wan.asso.fr, who welcomes contributions on all aspects of
newsroom management and editorial quality).
Some recent postings:
- A thoughtful piece on finding the balance between reader feedback and
editorial judgment, by Felipe T. Edwards, deputy editor of El Mercurio in
Chile.
- A definition of new "supersonic" readers and how to reach them, by Mario
Garcia, one of the world's leading newspaper designers.
- An examination of the tabloid boom in the United Kingdom, byt a man at
the heart of it -- George Brock, Managing Editor of The Times.
- An argument for a new newspaper business model by Miguel Basteiner, Deputy
Editor of Spain's largest newspaper, El Pais.
The site includes the latest "news about news" and other information of
interest to newspaper editors, all under one "virtual" roof. Visitors are
encourage to contribute their comments on any of the items, which cover a
wide range of topics.
Past postings are archived in an ever-expanding library -- categories
include everything from "how to involve new readers" to "visual strategies
and photojournalism" to a listing of memorable quotations from editors.
"Editors from Germany, Austria, France, England, Morocco and Korea have
already contributed to the blog. Clearly it is a cooperative weblog and a
real international forum," said Mr Pecquerie.
"Every day, an editor has several challenges to manage. If our blog can
only help solve one of them, we've done it! For example, with our section,
'new sources for editors,' we alert them about where they can find new
contributors or now angles. Another example: when the New York Times'
publishes an article on how the newspaper manages its Op-Ed page, it is very
instructive for other editors.
"But our blog still has a drawback: our sources are North American and
English-oriented for 70 percent of the feed. So, when we get relevant
information from other countries, it can be very helpful. In Mexico, the
cooperation among three newspapers in the Milenio group is an example that
other groups can follow. We were able to provide up-to-date and exclusive
information about this initiative thanks to a contribution from the Cases I
Associats consulting group. We invite more contributions of this kind!"
WAN, the global organisation for the newspaper industry, represents 18,000
newspapers; its membership includes 72 national newspaper associations,
individual newspaper executives in 100 countries, 13 news agencies and nine
regional and world-wide press groups.
Inquiries to: Larry Kilman, Director of Communications, WAN, 7 rue Geoffroy
St Hilaire, 75005 Paris France. Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 00. Fax: +33 1 47 42 49
48. Mobile: +33 6 10 28 97 36. E-mail: lkilman@wan.asso.fr
Larry Kilman
Director of Communications
World Association of Newspapers
7 Rue Geoffroy St. Hilaire (note new address)
75005 Paris France
Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 00
Fax: +33 1 47 42 49 48
E-mail: lkilman@wan.asso.fr
Visit our web site at www.wan-press.org