Wednesday squibs

Once again, I have way too many open browser windows. They include these worthwhile bits from the web.

• Links out = Links in. Check the math (please!). John Hassell with brief details on what he calls a “mathematically intimidating study” of what happens when media links out. (Hint: it correlates to the number of links coming in.)
• Chris Hedges, get a grip. Yesterday, I pointed (a little snidely) to Hedges’s screed The Internet Is No Substitute for the Dying Newspaper Industry. Today, Doug Fisher does a great job of pointing out all that’s wrong with the piece.
• Provide Great Journalists with Great Editors. Len Witt continues to unfold the process of Representative Journalism, this time with some refreshing ideas about the role of editors. Among them: “Thanks to computers there is really no need for the editor to be in the same building, county, state or country. The idea is to pair the best editors with the best journalists.”
• From Rim Editor to Ram the Editor. Speaking of editors, Roy Peter Clark has written a stirring call to keep the copy editors local and in-house.
• Papercuts. Erica Smith’s map of newspaper layoffs in the U.S. continues to be filled in. Total to date for 2008: 6,473+
• It’s time for journalism to face the music. Robert Niles draws an interesting comparison between local reports and the local symphony orchestra members and suggests, “If communities can come together and find a way to support an orchestra, they can come together and find a way to support a newsroom, too.” I recommend reading the whole thing.
• Things to Do in Print When You’re Dead. I’m surprised that there are not yet any comments on David Sullivan’s excellent post on the fact that newspapers are not dead and, possibly, not even dying. This deserves a close read and deep thought.
• Surveyed in an Alternate Newspaper Universe. Dorian Benkoil reports newspapers are doing telephone surveys as though it were still 1990.
• 2007 Canadian online ad revenue jumped by 38 per cent, but newspapers lagged behind. The rate of online revenue growth for newspapers ran nine percentage points behind the overall increase.
• 14 ways newspapers can make more money. Sean Blanda offers some ideas, ranging from selling t-shirts to going after the niches.