When readers don't care

Jeff Jarvis recently had an interesting post about newspapers getting rid of sections and finding out readers don't care. (Click here for Jeff's post. Click here for the original post by Amy Webb.)

Both Jeff and Amy make great points:

• Newspapers should think about cutting more sections or figuring out what sections really resonate with readers.
• Newspapers need to think like businesses. Don't create products that people don't want just because management thinks they need it. (The eat your vegetables mentality.)
• No more commodity news. Only news readers can't get anywhere else.

One of the greatest lesson I learned when I was in newspapers was the day we put in the wrong crossword puzzle. The phone never stopped ringing. A close second was the day we cut a recipe in half and had countless people call upset that the recipe didn't work. I pointed out to the editor that I didn't notice anyone calling because we left out an international story or didn't have the Vancouver Canucks score.

Watch people like Sam Zell. They understand this.