School of Journalism and Mass Communication University of Westminster

 

Call for Papers

Journalism’s Next Top Model: Meeting the Cost of Journalism Tomorrow

 

8^th and 9^th June 309 Regent Street London W1

 

News media all over the world are failing as the traditional revenue from advertising bleeds to the web. Free news websites are discouraging the young from buying newspapers. So who will pay for what sort of journalism in the future?

 

Following last year’s hugely successful “Journalism in Crisis” the University of Westminster is organising a conference on the future funding of the news industry.

 

Local papers in Britain are closing as display advertising follows the classifieds into cyberspace, yet some US regional papers are funded by subscribers for their websites; will readers accept pay walls round the tabloids? ITV regional news is in meltdown and will the licence fee be around to pay for BBC coverage?

 

This conference will examine the different experiments in sustaining serious journalism in the new environment, both commercial and not for profit:  

 

• the conditions for charging for content;
• leveraging content and customer data to advertisers and marketers;
• local authority funded media;
• direct support for non-profit news operation from subscribers and charities;
• the viability of Independently Funded News Consortia (IFNCs) and those without public subsidy;
• can investigative journalism continue to exist and who will pay for long form journalism?
• how will legal rights be protected without the financial support of a well funded fourth estate?
• what will happen to the BBC News output?
• and does the French subsidy model have wider applications?

 

We invite papers from academics in media, as well as business and others addressing the theoretical issues involved in the study of journalism. We are also keen to hear about practical experiments today, and possible developments tomorrow.

 

The conference will take place on June 8^th and 9^th 2010 at the Regent Street campus of the University of Westminster. As well as the presentation of academic papers there will be industry panels, featuring major names from press and broadcast as well as regulators.

 

Please send abstracts of not more than 250 words to Helen Cohen ([log in to unmask]) by 1^st March 2009.