Media Talk: Murdoch on newspapers

Media Talk: Murdoch on newspapers 

"In the end, we are where we began: with the bond of trust between readers and their paper. Much has changed since I walked into The News in Adelaide in 1954. Presses have never been faster or more flexible. We have computers that allow you to lay out multiple pages in multiple countries. We have faster distribution. But none of it will mean anything for newspapers unless we meet our first responsibility: earning the trust and loyalty of our readers.

I do not claim to have all the answers. Given the realities of modern technology, the broadcast version of this chapter can be sliced and digitally diced. It can be accessed in a day or a month or a decade. And I can rightly be held to account in perpetuity for the points on which I am proven wrong – as well as mocked for my inability to see just how much more different the world has become.

But I don't think I will be proven wrong on one point. The newspaper, or a very close electronic cousin, will always be around. It may not be thrown on your front doorstep the way it is today. But the thud it makes as it lands will continue to echo around society and the world."

- Rupert Murdoch, 'The Future of Newspapers: Moving beyond dead trees', A Golden Age of Freedom, 2008 Boyer Lecture.

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