Online Journalism Review Soul-Searching Time at Online News Units
"As nearly every week brings word of a new round of layoffs and cutbacks in new media, current and former online staffers, executives and industry analysts are surveying the wreckage and wondering whether the reluctant, often testy romance between media companies and the Internet has come to an end. My God, was it all ... just ... a meaningless fling?

The consensus so far? Media companies have begun some serious retrenchment and rolled back a number of initiatives, but they have not yet begun a full-scale retreat from the online medium. While the Holy Grail of online publishing -- a profitable business model -- remains elusive, the quest continues."

Editor & Publisher Online MSNBC.com TO REDUCE SPENDING
"A"We're certainly not reducing our coverage of news," said Nicol, when E&P asked him about the letter. Several hundred employees work for MSNBC.com, which shares bureaus with NBC News to complement newsgathering efforts.

For MSNBC.com, the past year had some months with record profitability, but other months fell short. Although planning is not completed, targeted cuts will be made in travel and entertainment, freelance expenses, and other discretionary spending, Nicol said. Some open positions around the company will be eliminated, but hiring will continue for critical positions."

redux [06.13.00]
Freedom Forum Web news scores above print, broadcast on credibility
"The most-credible Internet news sources are Web sites run by network or cable TV outlets or national newspapers, according to a new survey. Such well-known Internet names as America Online, Netscape and Yahoo! ranked higher on credibility than lesser-known sites."

"Among news media, continuing a trend, the Pew poll found key segments of the nation's news audience, particularly younger and better-educated Americans and those seeking financial information, are turning increasingly to the Internet."

""Increasingly, news organizations that are going to be successful have to offer news on a 24-hour basis..."

The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press Investors Now Go Online for Quotes, Advice
"Traditional news outlets are feeling the impact of two distinct and powerful trends. Internet news has not only arrived, it is attracting key segments of the national audience. At the same time, growing numbers of Americans are losing the news habit. Fewer people say they enjoy following the news, and fully half pay attention to national news only when something important is happening. And more Americans than ever say they watch the news with a remote control in hand, ready to dispatch uninteresting stories. To some extent, these trends are affecting all traditional media, but broadcast news outlets -- both national and local -- have been the most adversely affected. "

redux [04.20.00]
The Round Table Group Young Adults Most Often Get Info From Net - Study
"Young adults say the Internet, not newspapers or television, is their number one source of information, a Round Table Group survey has found.

Fifty-nine percent of Internet users in the 18- to 24-year-old age group say that their household gets more "useful information" from the Net than from newspapers; 53 percent say they receive more information from the Internet than from TV.

Fully 84 percent say that their household is more likely to use the Internet to find useful information than to go to the public library. For specific questions, 68 percent are more inclined to consult the Internet than turn to a newspaper and 67 percent are more likely to go to the Net than rely on television."