I'm amazed how many large offline publications (like newspapers) don't allow user feedback, in the style of blog user comments, on every article of their website. Now, I'm sure they have blog-like sections to their websites that allow user comments. But why not everywhere? Here's some examples I came across while reading about the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes.
- http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/feedarticle/8560402
- http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-newswire16-2009jun16,0,6238518.story
- http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/06/16/20090616coyotes0616.html
Now, here's pretty much the same article topic on CBC.
300+ user comments. I'm not sure what their average is, but it's pretty apparent that readers want to engage in the conversation. From there, it's easy for a website to create a small user community for their readers. Acquire email addresses. Increase pageviews. Increase email subscriptions. Increase ad impressions. Increase profits.
It's no wonder that many of these newspapers are going bankrupt. They're so fixated on their print, that they can't see the goldmine of the Internet. You can't just put your offline article on a website. You have to go the entire nine yards. You need to make the Internet your focus, not just a side business. Print is in decline. Any newspaper that can't make the move will disappear and new online-focused media companies will emerge to take their place. And they'll print newspapers to compliment their offerings and make lots of money doing it.
Update: My dad just left two comments on my blogs today. My own little community.
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