还有什么能拯救新闻业吗？

NPR。

NPR.

现在看来这似乎难以想象，但不久以前，新闻业实际上是一门不错的生意。

It seems impossible to imagine now, but not long ago, journalism was actually a good business.

几十年来，数亿美国人依赖报纸、电视和广播来了解世界和他们所在社区的动态。

For decades, hundreds of millions of Americans relied on newspapers, TV, and radio to find out what was going on in the world and in their communities.

新闻业的资金主要来自两个来源：新闻消费者和广告商。

The money for journalism came from two main sources, news consumers and advertisers.

新闻机构在这两方面都有着取之不尽的资源。

And news outlets had an endless supply of both.

当互联网出现时，情况发生了变化。

When the Internet came along, things changed.

媒体行业分析师肯·多克特亲眼目睹了这一切。

Media industry analyst Ken Doctor had a front row seat to it.

你可以看到，由于谷歌和雅虎的冲击，报纸业开始衰退。

You can see that newspapers were in decline because of the inroads of Google, Yahoo.

它们夺走了广告收入。

They were taking advertising revenue.

它们还夺走了某种意义上更宝贵的东西——注意力。

They were also taking something that that's even in a sense more precious, which is attention.

消费者的注意力转向了社交媒体和流媒体。

Consumers' attention turned to social media and streaming.

广告商也随之而去，支撑新闻业数个世纪的商业模式开始瓦解。

Advertisers followed, and the business model that supported news for centuries began to crumble.

在过去的几十年里，超过3000家地方报纸关闭，数千名记者被裁员。

In the past couple decades, more than 3,000 local newspapers have closed, and thousands of journalists have been laid off.

对数百万美国人来说，留下的空白往往被虚假信息、付费网红和AI垃圾内容填补。

For millions of Americans, the vacuum left behind has often been filled by misinformation, paid influencers, and AI slop.

人们完全可以据此合理地得出结论：基于事实的独立地方新闻业已经完了。

One could look at all this and reasonably conclude that fact based independent local journalism is cooked.

但肯还没有就此放弃。

But Ken is not giving up just yet.

我相信，如果你做得好，人们自然会来。

I do believe if you build it right, they will come.

这是《Planet Money》的标识。

This is the indicator for Planet Money.

我是阿德里安·马。

I'm Adrian Ma.

我是韦隆·王。

And I'm Waylon Wong.

今天在节目中，我们将关注两家逆势而上的初创公司。

Today on the show, we'll look at two startups bucking the trend.

它们迄今为止的成功，或许能为地方新闻的复兴指明一条出路。

Their success so far might just reveal a path forward for a local news revival.

在今年的奥斯卡颁奖典礼上，一场又一场较量夺得了最佳影片奖。

At this year's Oscars, one battle after another took home the award for best picture.

迈克尔·B·乔丹获得了最佳男主角奖，而颁奖直播中也拿蒂莫西·查拉梅开了不少玩笑。

Michael b Jordan won for lead actor, and the telecast had plenty of jokes at Timothee Chalamet's expense.

通过NPR应用或您收听播客的任何平台，收听流行文化快乐时光的回顾。

Listen to a recap on pop culture happy hour via the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

加利福尼亚州圣克鲁斯县的人口约为26万。

Santa Cruz County in California has a population of around 260,000 residents.

长期以来，当地的主要报纸是《圣克鲁斯哨兵报》。

For a long time, the paper of record there was the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

但当肯·多克特2019年搬到那里时，他说《哨兵报》已今非昔比。

But when Ken Docter moved there in 2019, he says the Sentinel was a shell of its former self.

它的所有者——对冲基金奥尔登全球资本——以收购报纸并大幅裁员而臭名昭著。

Its owner, a hedge fund called Alden Global Capital, was notorious for buying up newspapers and slashing their staffs.

在从事记者和媒体分析师工作数十年后，肯觉得他必须做点什么。

After a few decades working as a journalist and then as a media analyst, Ken felt like he had to do something.

我决定将我的原则付诸实践，放弃相对轻松的顾问和分析师工作，转而成为创业者。

I decided that I needed to, put my principles out there and exchange the relatively easy work of being a consultant and analyst for being an entrepreneur.

肯决定创办自己的地方新闻媒体。

Ken decided to start his own local news outlet.

肯，坚持你的原则肯定有更简单的方法。

Ken, there gotta be easier ways to stand by your principles.

是的。

Yeah.

我的意思是，走这条路只会陷入疯狂，肯。

I mean, only madness lies that way, Ken.

但尽管传统报纸在衰退，肯相信只要稍作调整，新闻业的经典商业模式依然可行。

But despite the decline of legacy newspapers, Ken believed that with some tweaks, the classic business model for journalism was still sound.

你让企业付钱给你，因为他们想做广告。

You get businesses to pay you who want to advertise.

他们想接触到顾客。

They wanna reach customers.

你让读者付钱给你，因为他们喜欢你写的内容。

And you get readers to pay you because they like they they like what you're writing.

他们想知道发生了什么。

They wanna know what's going on.

所以，在2020年，肯带领一个由10人组成的新闻团队，创办了一个名为Lookout Santa Cruz的数字新闻网站。

So in 2020, with a newsroom of 10 people, Ken started a digital news site called Lookout Santa Cruz.

在短短几年内，肯表示，该网站的读者群已经增长到每月覆盖全县约一半的成年人。

In a few short years, Ken says its readership has grown to the point where they reach about half the adults in the county every month.

几年前，Lookout因其对当地洪灾的报道而荣获普利策奖。

A couple of years ago, Lookout won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of floods in the city.

这一认可帮助Lookout顺利开设了第二个新闻团队，负责报道俄勒冈州尤金市的新闻。

That recognition helped pave the way for Lookout to open a second newsroom, one that covers the city of Eugene, Oregon.

很少有地方新闻机构能有足够的人员同时覆盖城市、县、教育、学区、大学、公共卫生、艺术、美食和体育。

Very few local news outlets have enough people where they can cover both city, county, education, school boards, universities, public health, arts, food, sports.

我们在两个地方都做到了这一点。

We do that in both places.

肯表示，未来不久还计划再开设三个地方新闻团队。

And Ken says there are plans to open three more local newsrooms in the near future.

Lookout确实如此。

Lookout indeed.

Lookout成功的秘诀是什么？

What is the secret to Lookout success?

我们常说，我们既坚定不移地以使命为导向，又坚定不移地以商业为驱动。

We like to say we're fiercely mission oriented and fiercely business driven.

好的。

Okay.

从商业角度看，Lookout是一家公共利益公司，这意味着它在盈利与公共服务之间寻求平衡。

So business wise, Lookout is what's called a public benefit corporation, which means it balances profit making with public service.

肯在运营过程中总结了几条经验。

And Ken has a couple lessons to share from running it.

第一条经验是，资金至关重要。

The first lesson is that capital is key.

为了启动这项业务，肯向多家慈善资助方推介，告诉他们他希望筹集250万美元。

To get the operation off the ground, Ken pitched various philanthropic funders, telling them he wanted to raise 2 and a half million dollars.

他们一听就说：‘25亿美元？给圣克鲁兹？’

And they go like, 2 and a half billion for Santa Cruz.

你疯了吗？

Are you crazy?

你知道的。

You know?

这就是一个小小、很酷的地方。

It's just this, you know, little little groovy place.

但你怎么给这种酷劲儿标价呢？

But how do you put a price tag on grooviness?

我知道。

I know.

对吧？

Right?

一些资助方说，你为什么不先雇两个人，先给我们展示一下你能做什么呢？

And some funders were like, why don't you just hire, like, two people and show us what you can do first?

但肯说，即使是这样一个酷酷的小地方，那样也行不通。

But Ken said, even for a groovy little place, that's not going to work.

如果你想取代日报，就必须给人们一个足够好、足够大的产品。

You have to give people a good enough and big enough product if you want to replace a daily newspaper.

我想取代日报，成为社区中人们可以信赖的信息来源。

I wanted to replace the daily newspaper as a source of truth in the community that people could rely on.

这意味着要雇佣足够的记者，让他们讲述社区的故事。

That meant hiring enough reporters so that they could tell the story of the community.

肯成功筹集了资金，但他不希望Lookout依赖慈善资金。

Ken managed to raise the money, but he didn't want Lookout to be dependent on charitable funding.

所以肯说，Lookout的第二个经验是建立多种收入来源的商业模式，也就是所谓的创收。

So Ken says the second lesson from Lookout is the importance of a business model with multiple streams of what's called earned revenue.

例如，Lookout出售订阅和广告，但也通过举办活动和提供他们称为推广内容的服务来赚钱。

For example, Lookout sells subscriptions and ads, but they also make money hosting events and offering something they call promoted content.

这些是广告商委托撰写的文章，与Lookout的新闻文章一同发布。

These are articles commissioned by advertisers, which run alongside Lookout's news articles.

这些推广内容在网站上都有明确标注。

This promoted content is clearly labeled on the site.

这种多管齐下的收入策略已经取得了成效。

This multi pronged revenue strategy has been working.

过去几年里，肯表示，Lookout的大部分收入都来自自营收入，而且计划继续扩大这一部分。

For the past couple of years, Ken says the majority of Lookout's revenue has been earned and the plan is to keep that growing.

这是一项艰巨的工作，但却是可行的。

It's tough work, but it is doable.

我们再也不把它当作一项实验，或等待某个人来接手了。

It is no longer in any of our minds an experiment or waiting for somebody to come along.

当然，现在不需要亿万富翁，但只要你执行得当，就有足够的资金来服务这些社区，而且我们认为情况会越来越好。

Certainly not a billionaire at this point, but there is enough money if you execute correctly to serve these communities, and we think it'll get better and better.

Lookout并不是唯一一家在行业整体收缩时期仍在增长的本地新闻初创企业。

Lookout is not the only local new startup actually growing during a time when the rest of the industry is contracting.

另一个例子是Deep South Today，这是一个总部位于密西西比州和路易斯安那州的三家新闻机构组成的非营利网络。

Another example is Deep South Today, a nonprofit network of three newsrooms based in Mississippi and Louisiana.

首席执行官沃里克·萨宾表示，今年计划在阿肯色州增设第四家新闻机构。

CEO Warwick Sabin says there are plans to add a fourth newsroom in Arkansas this year.

有很多人群长期被忽视，无法获取基本的信息，比如市议会或家长教师协会会议的动态，或者谁在竞选公职。

There are just a lot of populations that are underserved that don't have access to basic information, like what's happening at the city board or at the PTA meetings or who's running for office.

尤其是在问责报道和调查性报道方面，我们许多地区根本看不到这类工作在进行。

Certainly, when it comes to accountability reporting and investigative reporting, that's just not happening in so many parts of our region.

而正是在这一点上，Deep South Today 的记者们发挥了重要作用。

And this is where the journalists of Deep South today have made a difference.

例如，其旗下一份名为《密西西比今日》的出版物在2023年赢得了普利策奖。

For example, one of its publications called Mississippi Today won a Pulitzer Prize in 2023.

他们因揭露前州长如何动用数百万州福利资金为其亲友谋利而获此殊荣。

They got it for revealing how the former governor used millions in state welfare funds to benefit his friends and family.

就在去年，其新奥尔良站点 Verite News 的报道帮助一名男子洗清冤屈，重获自由。

And then just last year, reporting by its New Orleans site, Verite News, got a man freed from prison.

他们与 ProPublica 联合开展的调查，揭露出导致该男子定罪的所谓‘科学证据’实属荒谬。

Their joint investigation with ProPublica examined the junk science behind the man's conviction.

有趣的是，尽管他们做了如此有影响力的工作，却并不向读者收费。

What's interesting is even though they do this really impactful work, it doesn't charge readers for it.

我们没有付费墙。

We don't have a paywall.

我们免费向所有希望阅读或转载内容的人提供全部内容。

We make all of our content available for free to whoever wants to consume it or whoever wants to republish it.

好的。

Okay.

那么，他们如何既能免费提供新闻报道，又能维持运营呢？

So how do they manage to give away their journalism and keep the lights on?

沃里克表示，扩张是他们财务战略的一部分。

Warwick says growth is part of their financial strategy.

网络增加的新闻编辑室越多，就能吸引越多的读者、广告商和捐赠者，从而带来更多的收入。

The more newsrooms the network adds, the more readers, advertisers, and donors they can attract, and then the more revenue they can bring in.

由于人力资源、技术和销售等所有业务职能都已经由总部承担，整个网络都能享受到规模经济的好处。

And because all the business functions like HR, tech, and sales are already paid for, the entire network can benefit from economies of scale.

随着我们的发展，每单位新闻报道的成本显然会降低。

As we grow, you know, the per unit cost of doing the journalism obviously decreases.

因此，规模本身将为我们创造更多的收入机会，并使这种模式更加可持续。

So the scale itself is going to create more revenue opportunities for us and is going to continue to make this model more sustainable.

这与大型报业集团和对冲基金所采用的策略相似，但他们的优先事项是公共服务而非利润。

This is similar to the strategy used by the big newspaper chains and hedge funds, but the priority is public service rather than profits.

Deep South Today 另一种在不花大钱的情况下扩展新闻报道的方式是与其他媒体合作。

Another way Deep South today has been able to expand its journalism without breaking the bank is by partnering with other outlets.

一些是大型媒体，比如《纽约时报》或美联社。

Some big, like The New York Times or Associated Press.

另一些则是小型媒体，比如地方公共广播电台。

Others are small, like local public radio stations.

Warwick 认为，他们的模式可以复制到其他失去本地新闻的地区。

Warwick thinks their model can be replicated in other parts of the country that have lost local news.

我对新闻业的未来非常乐观，主要是因为我相信信息的需求始终存在。

I'm very bullish on the future of journalism mainly because I think there's always going to be a need for information.

也许另一个让人乐观的理由是，Deep South Today 和 Lookout 只是两个正在重新带回本地新闻的初创媒体例子。

And perhaps another reason to be bullish is that Deep South Today, Lookout, these are just two examples of startups that are bringing local news back.

我们是从西北大学的本地新闻倡议中了解到他们的。

We learned about them from Northwestern University's Local News Initiative.

如果你想查看更多有趣的新兴初创企业，可以去看看他们的网站。

And if you wanna see more cool new startups, give their website a look.

加油，猫队。

Go cats.

哦，那是你的母校。

Oh, that's your alma mater.

那是我的母校。

That's my alma mater.

是的。

Yeah.

对。

Yeah.

本集由科里·布里奇斯制作，音效由吉米·基利负责。

This episode was produced by Corey Bridges with engineering by Jimmy Kealy.

本集由库珀·卡茨·麦金和维托·埃曼努埃尔进行事实核查。

It was fact checked by Cooper Katz McKim and Vito Emmanuel.

凯特·康卡农是我们的编辑，《指标》是NPR的制作。

Kate Concannon is our editor and the indicator is a production of NPR.

在今年的奥斯卡奖上，一部部影片接连斩获最佳影片奖。

At this year's Oscars, one battle after another took home the award for best picture.

迈克尔·B·乔丹荣获最佳男主角，颁奖典礼上也充斥着不少对蒂莫西·查拉梅的调侃。

Michael b Jordan won for lead actor, and the telecast had plenty of jokes at Timothee Chalamet's expense.

请通过NPR应用或您收听播客的平台收听流行文化欢乐时光的回顾。

Listen to a recap on pop culture happy hour via the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.