Introducing a Revolutionary Idea in Journalism...

An intriguing new idea is making the rounds of some J-School educators and laid-off journalists. It's a pretty simply idea and based on the Cable TV model, simply put newspapers should start charging for their online content and viewers, aggregators, TV and radio news need to pay up.

As my friend and former colleague Holly Shreve Gilbert at Oakland U noted: "The idea I've had rattling around has been that online news services will look something like cable TV. A tiered offering...For $100 bucks a year you get access to 10 national news sites, 10 state, 10 local...for $50 you get ....5 of each...or something along that scale. I haven't ever worked out the details but it seems like there might be something there. .."

Her husband, Garry, now JRN director at OU, a good friend, former exec editor at The Oakland Press and visiting prof at MSU, chimed in with: "Over-the-air TV is free but people are willing to pay for more channels and the high quality digital signal delivered via cable. Internet Service Providers, which charge people for access to the Web, are in a position to raise their rates and share a portion of that revenue with the content providers that get the most views."

These are some of the ideas that will get folks thinking and doing. Every publisher in the nation should consider launching this effort on Bastille Day, July 14, 2009. Just say I am part of a new cabal I'm calling the Journalism Liberation Front!!!

This idea originated with John Coots, a smart, smart guy who is a former newspaper editor and current publisher. He said in an email: "I had supper last night with some newspaper guys up in New Hampshire... the big hoo-rah reaction at the table came when one of the guys suggested that all the newspapers in the country simultaneously convert to paid web access only on Bastille Day. You know, $40 or $50 a year, or the papers? website just won?t open past the front page! It's sort of a general strike of the Mother Ship of All News Providers. The first to panic and subscribe would be local television and radio station affiliates whose staffs wouldn't have a clue how to find out anything without reading the paper first. I kinda like it!"

I like it, too. In fact, I tweeted it. Join in the fun. It's called support your local journalism source!!

And on the Green and White front...Excitement is rampant on campus. The Spartans are Dancing with the Stars in Detroit. The Spartans beat UConn last night and now face North Carolina is the big game Monday night.at Ford Field. Already the pundits are claiming a victory for the Tar Heels. With Izzo running the battle plan, the Spartans should never be underrated. Go Green!