The objective of this site is to track in an organized manner the evolution of media to digital platforms, analyzing the work of leaders in the fields of media, journalism and technology. Part of the challenge for old and young alike is that we are running on an ever-speeding treadmill of information sources, new technologies, and opinions. For the adult generation that wasn't raised on these technologies, this speed of change creates anxiety and an inability to grasp the significance of what is happening. The younger generation may also be missing out on the valuable lessons of past media struggles (whether they care or not is another issue). Is there value to stepping back and placing this in the framework of the evolution of media over the past several decades? Let's take a short moment to refresh ourselves on the last 110 years of change as modern society emerges and mass media becomes an industry as big as steel and fossil fuels.
Turn of the 20th Century
Newspapers are the main source of mass communication and media becomes an industry. Major innovations in newspaper production combined with rapid immigration and urbanziation create the first wave of mass media consumption. Some industry leaders compete on the basis of sensationalism, often referred to as yellow journalism. Newspaper publishers such as Pulitzer and Hearst hold enough power to sway public opinion and the course of presidential elections.
Live theater, is the main form of mass entertainment. Vaudeville, a variety-oriented mix of music and comedy, is the most popular form, performed in local neighborhoods in large cities and touring through rural towns across the nation. Longacre Square in New York becomes the nexus of theater consumption and the star from which vaudeville entertainers radiate across the nation.
Masses enjoy congregating in public spaces. Once the midtown subway is completed, Longacre Square becomes the highest trafficked neighborhood in New York offering the greatest promotional opportunities. Spectacular advertisements spring up along its major thoroughfare, beaming messages to the pedestrian masses. In 1904, Adolph Ochs moves his newspaper, The New York Times, into Longacre Square and it is remained Times Square. A newspaper is written and manufactured in the center of the most dynamic media space in America. Ochs invents a great social event attended by thousands by dropping a ball in Times Square on New Year’s Eve.
First Decades of the 20th Century – Prosperity and the Rise of Cinema
We now see the first major disruptor in the modern era: Cinema. Audiences can now watch events and receive news and information in multiple locations simultaneously. The technology improves and the product gains influence for the next 50 years.
Effects on Traditional Media:
Newspapers may loose some of their control over people’s time, but continue to dominate news sources, advertising channels and overall mass communication.
Ø Live theater consolidates significantly as several theaters are converted to cinema use. Although less pervasive, the quality of live theater and events improves and the some of the greatest composers, singers, comedians and actors gain fame (George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Fanny Brice, Eugene O’Neill, Bert Williams, Flo Ziegfield). The golden age of vaudeville is over, but more sophisticated entertainment emerges. And when movies begin to talk in the late 20s, the legends of Broadway go to Hollywood and create new careers.
Ø Masses continue to congregate in public spaces and become increasingly attracted to central business districts with the lure of cinema, an inexpensive entertainment. As pedestrian traffic grows, Times Square fills up with some of its first legendary advertising spectaculars under the direction of the OJ Gude Company.
1920s – 1930s – Mania/Depression and The Age of Radio
The next major disruption is born amidst the great boom after World War I: Radio. Live events, news and entertainments can be broadcasted into the home for the first time. Advertisers can reach large audiences instantaneously by sponsoring entire shows. The boom however gives way to the Great Depression and all businesses related to news and entertainment suffer. The fickle nature of advertising as the only source of revenue for a media enterprise is exposed.
RCA Corporation, the largest manufacturer or radios and the Google of its day, makes a fortune. As with newspapers, influencing the means of production as well as content proves highly profitable. 30 Rockefeller Center, the house that radio built, remains a temple of broadcasting to the current day.
Theories develop on the societal impact of mass media. One of the first major theories likens mass media to a hypodermic needle or magic bullet that has immediate one-way, and lasting influence on the intended audience. The broadcast of the Mercury Theater's "War of the Worlds" is the quintessential example as this radio broadcast of a ficticious martian invasion immediately instigates a mass panic.
Effects on Traditional Media
Ø Newspapers see the first major declines in penetration and several daily papers close as consumers turn to another, often instant source for news, information and entertainment. Advertisers gain powerful new channels to reach mass audiences. The Associated Press, a cooperative created by newspapers, refuses to give wire access to radio stations, allowing its competitor the United Press to flourish. AP caves in 1935. Media transformation can be slowed never for very long. Major newspaper columnists and correspondents like Walter Winchell become national radio personalities.
Ø Cinema continues to grow alongside its audio counterpart, as movies begin to talk.
Ø The quality of Live Theater moves to new heights in the musical Showboat in 1927 and the migration of its major stars to radio, reaching wider audiences than ever dreamed before.
Ø The public square remains vibrant despite myopic efforts to make drinking illegal and the deluge of unemployment at the end of the Roaring Twenties. With the growth of neon lighting, Times Square grows brighter under the guidance of advertising impresario Douglas Leigh.
Late 1940s and 1950s - Post War Prosperity and The Rise of Television
Television takes radio one step further by bringing both image and voice into the home. The year 1939, often considered the greatest year for the American film, also sees the introduction of television at the New York World’s Fair (Building The World of Tomorrow). Television production is stalled by the war effort, but post-war prosperity means that most households will be able to afford the device in a relatively short period of time. Vaudville-style entertainment rises again as one of the first successful tevevision fomats.
The hypodermic theory of media is challenged, as many academics expound a theory of limited mid-level effects; media may influence what we think about and deem important, but the individual maintains perspective. Extensive research is conducted on media's role in shaping the results of political campaigns.
Effects on Traditional Media
Ø Newspapers decline further as most major markets evolve towards one newspaper monopolies. Joint operating agreements allowing newspapers to combine business operations while maintaining separate editorial voices are permitted by the Justice Department. Some newspapers are offered first pass at owning local TV stations and many still do. Eventually, laws are passed to limit local ownership of media by conglomerates.
Ø Radio now plays second fiddle to the power of television, although expansion of frequencies permits the growth of stations targeting diverse audiences.
Ø Cinema is decimated as the primary source of entertainment moves to the home. By the mid-50s, movie production is a fraction of its level in the mid-30s. Studios attempt to draw audiences out of the home with Spectavision, 3D and Smellorama.
Ø While less people go out to see live entertainment, the Golden Age of Broadway is ushered in as Rogers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Loewe, and Bob Fosse rise to great fame (Fosse is one of the great media crossover impresarios, growing up in vaudeville-style nightclubs, breaking into films and then realizing his greatest triumphs in theater).
Ø Public spaces begin to loose their vibrancy as urban environments shrink amid the rush to home-ownership in suburban spaces.
Late 1960s, 70s and Early 80s – Economic Turmoil, Decline of the Public Square and the Rise of Cable Television
By shooting satellites in the air and laying cables first across suburban landscapes, media pioneers create the means for hundreds of TV stations to be piped into every home. Swayed by the diversity of channels and the uniqueness of certain new stations (CNN, MTV, Bloomberg), consumers are now willing to pay for a medium that had been offered free for nearly three decades. Ted Turner creates a global instant news channel from the ground up and transforms a local baseball team into a national franchise through the first “superstation.”
Urban spaces turn uglier as more people stay home for their media consumption, the post-war boom fizzles, and legal decisions easing freedom of expression permit pornography in public spaces.
The media theorist Marshall Mcluhan introduces concepts around the Global Village and the varying temperatures of media - hot/encompassing versus cool/immersive (or something to that nature). Since few understand what he's talking about, Mcluhan indeed personifies that the medium is the message, even more so than the content in many situations.
Effects on Traditional Media
Ø More newspapers close as a shrinking audience and advertising pie help trigger major labor/management conflicts. Most regions become dominated by one newspaper franchises. Some newspapers survive through sensationalism. Harking back to the yellow journalism at the turn of the century, The Summer of Sam of 1977 (David Berkowitz, blackouts and a Yankee World Series victory) is a watershed for tabloid journalism.
Ø TV networks are disrupted as their audiences splinter, but old TV shows and movies can be recycled to fill the expansive inventory created by cable.
Ø Radio becomes more and more specialized, attracting niche audiences.
Ø The cinema audience continues to shrink, but the blockbuster movie is born. While combined grosses decrease, individual movies create box office records.
Ø While fear permeates the urban landscape, live theater declines dramatically. Times Square becomes the Devil’s Playground as pornographic theaters, grind houses and shooting galleries rule its urban landscape.
Late 1980s and 1990s – The Rebirth of Times Square, Satellite TV and the Nascent Stage of Digital Media
With government subsidies in hand and the support of neighborhood grass roots movements, major media corporations reclaim Times Square. Theater becomes a brand extension for Disney and other entertainment corporations. Reuters, Conde Nast, Viacom and Wall Street institutions vie for a presence in this global communications center. Broadway theaters are rebuilt, some restored to early century glory, and new records in attendance are set.
Proclaiming that "Content is King," Viacom acquires CBS in September of 1999.
Satellite technologies enable the beaming of signals to every home. The local cable monopoly can now be bypassed. International programming, especially sporting events, expands its reach to every corner of the globe, News Corporation emerging as the world leader. Despite the glut of options, News Corporation is able to create a fourth television network, assisted by sensationalist programming and the acquisition of rights to premier sporting events. In the process, the cost of broadcast rights soars.
The great disintermediation device now known as the Internet is commercialized and the first banner ads appear online. A boom in investment in Internet companies turns bust when limited revenue streams materialize. Most newspapers and magazines move their content on line without charge, creating the expectation that their product is essentially free when read on a computer. In January, 2000, Time Warner and America Online merge, touting media convergence across digital platforms as an essential 21st Century strategy.
Effects on Traditional Media
Ø Many newspapers and magazines gain greater readership online, but low Internet penetration alleviates any major threat to their traditional businesses. The Internet boom drives print advertising paging in newspapers and magazines to record heights. While drying up a major revenue stream, the crash of the Internet bubble in 2000 permits traditional media to take a collective sigh of relief as the pace of disintermediation subsides.
Ø Cable companies and content providers fight competition by withholding programming from satellite startups and other competitors. Eventually deals transpire that limit satellite growth in the United States while it flourishes in the rest of the world.
Ø Radio turns to satellite distribution to enable more targeted content, but remains a shrinking communication channel relegated to commuters.
Ø Movies see their greatest blockbusters as great marketing machines are churning at peak effectiveness and economic prosperity rolls on.
Ø New Year’s Eve at the turn of the century sees Times Square at its zenith, the planet’s public square ringing in the new millennium. All major media is indeed surging, buoyed by an event that happens once every thousand years.
21st Century – Boom/Bust and the Maturing of Digital Media
Publishing is now accessible to everyone online. Text, photos and videos zoom across the web. Amateur impresarios in all fields are born, talented and otherwise.
All forms of media converge on mobile devices, the I Phone and Blackberry becoming the leading technologies to date. Within a few years of introduction, these devices are affordable on a mass scale.
Google commercializes the search engine and a new form of advertising is born that is highly targeted and measurable. Contextual ad space can be sold to match content on web pages. Simultaneously, advertising inventory becomes almost limitless as thousands of web pages are created daily.
A socially altuistic West Coast Entrepreneur's online bulletin board called "Craigslist" becomes a reliable exchange for all types of classified advertising, greatly reducing this revenue source for traditional media print and online communications.
The Associated Press, while remaining a cooperative owned by newspapers, sells content to the major internet aggregators (Google, Yahoo, Microsoft). Some Newspapers fight back by canceling or scaling back AP subscriptions.
Social networking sites allow millions of people to communicate instantaneously, sending messages, photos, videos and other forms of information at little cost. A birthday video now competes with prime-time television.
In a shocking metaphor of the convergence between media and finance, Times Square is ground zero for the greatest modern flop in financial history, the collapse of Lehman Brothers and the financial crisis of 2008.
Media theory is turned on its head as both the strength of the medial channels and the ability of the indivdual to interact grow significantly. The ratio of senses evolves quickly in ways that we are just starting to understand.
Effects on Traditional Media
Ø While many newspapers and magazines continue to gain greater readership online, the time of each visit diminishes and their greatest sources of revenue, advertising and circulation, are compromised. While consumers will readily pay for Internet access, they expect to receive news and entertainment at no charge (similar to the early stages of radio and television without large advertising dollars underwriting the enterprise). If a publication charges for content online, it risks loosing its audiences to similar publications, creating an industry-wide case of the Prisoner’s Dilemma.
Ø More and more people choose to watch videos online that they have uploaded, downloaded, or created themselves. For the first time cable penetration declines, but many cable operators become internet service providers. To reduce costs, NBC puts Jay Leno on every night in prime-time to compete with your birthday video.
Ø The audience for movies is further reduced. To increase revenue opportunities, audiences are subjected to a greater dose of in-theater promotions as they are captive in their seats.
Ø The recession of 2007-2009 intensifies the death watch of traditional media enterprises as revenue streams continue to shrink.
Ø Video proliferates in public spaces to a sometimes oppressive scale, including the M&M monsters in Times Square.
Themes:
Ø Rapidly accelerating process through the last 110 years. Whereas it took 50 years for cinema to be eclipsed by television, it took less than five years for Google to achieve more advertising revenue than all major newspapers combined.
Ø Each innovation disrupts and forces its predecessors to evolve into something less "mass" but with a better value proposition – surviving intermediaries must add more relevance or they will die off – why utilize an intermediary if you can go directly to the source? Less intermediation means that the source and end user can correspond directly through technology. The live, immediate event is more accessible.
Ø Those managing the infrastructure and the devices (newspapers before other media, RCA, Apple, Google) do better than pure content providers. Content gets more expensive as its value becomes more apparent (think of the baseball player renegotiating a contract after a banner year or the film star coming off a hit movie). The high cost of content can destroy traditional models that can no longer raise the price of advertising and subscriptions.
Ø Sensationalism can break through the glut of programming and temporarily increase market share, but isn’t easy to sustain (Smellorama's day in the limelight is mercifully brief).
Ø Financial foundation continually fragments – sometimes a brand new methodology grabs a major revenue share – i.e. – search engine advertising in the early part of the 21st Century.
Ø One model for modern communication; Groups of Journalists or SMEs correspond directly with their audience through social sites/regularly updating web page content/regularly providing video presentations on their websites/occasionally reinforcing their audience with live events.
Ø Through 110 years of transformation, there’s still a New Year’s Celebration in Times Square. Messages continually bombard the pedestrian masses.
