The reasons why news companies lost so much business

Reading a book called Entrepreneurial Journalism: How to Build What's Next for News. So far, it is teaching me a lot.

I would like to use this particular blog post for my reaction to why revenues declined.

"Revenues declined because traditional media companies jealously guarded their cash cows instead of pushing new lines of business." 

So it wasn't because hard news seems to be in decline, but rather because no one planned for the empire to fall. It actually seems kind of odd that we could go from hand delivering news and letters via a pony to Gutenberg's printing press. And then there. The roadmap kind of stops there when it comes to news when you think about it. We improved the printing press and increased the ad revenue, but has much else really changed?

Oh yeah, we got some color ink. 

But really, the pioneers in the journalism world got as far as printing the news!? My questions is why haven't we come up with something bigger, better, and more geared to what audiences want? Why haven't we already been-there-done-that with digital? 

That's where the revenue declined. Selfishness got in the way. It's kind of amazing.

Just think -- if someone had said, "Guys, this won't last forever. We've been at the top of the mountain for too long. We've gotta have a plan B and C. Where next?" The transition from old to new wouldn't be so drastic or fast.

Rick Edmonds with Poynter said:

"There was an assumption that there would be an orderly transition from the old world to the new." 

Of course, I guess it's easier to look back and say, "Wow, you guys messed up," rather than move forward and take responsibility now. Maybe that was plan B.