Dutch media blog Frankwatching posted a blog yesterday written (in Dutch) by graphic designer Floor Drees, with an intriguing headline, I translated as ‘The newspaper will never be gone. That is…’. In this post she states that there is a future for hard copy newspapers, if Birgit Donker (editor in chief at NRC Handelsblad) does something about the (current) relationship between on line and offline media.
A couple of things struck me while reading this post; one is that this ‘conclusion’ sounds a bit like old news to me. Hasn’t this been brought up again and again over the past few years? Second, is that she basically suggests a crossmedial way of working with on line and offline media; which of course is also old news.
My personal opinion is that the media world is already much further ahead than Drees gives it credit for. Newspaper websites do not just copy content out of today’s paper. It is so much more with videos, podcasts, the latest news reports (mostly ANP, Reuters…but still) and a chance for readers to speak their minds. That is not to say there is no room for improvement. Of course a lot can still be done to integrate news websites in more useful and efficient ways.
Drees has had some critique on her blog and says she will clarify in a new post next week. Can’t wait…
Annewil Neervens 
That is why this isn’t a conslusion, but an introduction to a series of articles on the subject. With subject as podcast, weblogs and the situation of ‘paper news’ in other countries.
@ Floor: it seems to me as if you’re writing in the ‘wrong’ order. Some of your statements about newspapers and websites struck me as a little bit odd. I’m curious to see how you are going to continue this subject in you’re next post, though.