In Tough Market, Reporting Captures Readers, Digital Compliments

Michael Hedges October 14, 2019 - Follow on Twitter

Publishers have invested in everything digital. This has brought benefits for many; vertical, more personalized content as well as data-driven, targeted revenue strategies. The publishing business does not seem quite a grim as it did just a few years ago, proprietor’s yelps notwithstanding. As digital tricks like paywalls do irreparable harm to news brands, bright spots continue to emerge. The biggest opportunity for publishers is the news.

Readership estimates for Austrian publishers, released last week by Media-Analyse, indicates reasonable stability for newspapers, magazines and associated online offerings. On the whole, daily newspapers reach just under two-thirds (63.3%) of the reading public reported the survey for the twelve months ending in June, exactly the same a the same period last year. Readership for most individual titles barely budged. The Media-Analyse readership survey is released twice a year and measures persons 14 years and older.

Gaining readers and the note of Austrian media watchers was Vienna weekly Der Falter with 3.1% reach, up from 2.0% year on year, the only Austrian news publication to show significant growth. Reach in Vienna rose to 7.0% from 5.3%. Everybody in Austrian media knows the reason: Ibiza. Der Falter took the Austrian lead in reporting that little matter and publishing video with populist politicians and an alleged Russian contact in an Ibiza hotel room make a variety of revealing promises. The video, clearly a sting, was first released (May 17) by German news magazine Der Spiegel and Bavarian newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung. Days later the Austrian government collapsed.

Der Falter was known for years as a Vienna-oriented alternative newspaper, cultural but not overly political, much in the early spirit of the New York City legacy alternative weekly Village Voice. That changed with editor Florian Klenk’s arrival in 2012. Now it’s small staff chases exclusives, spreading equal opportunity to every corner. “The newspaper the Austrian establishment hates,” headlined politico.eu (September 29). Competitors take every opportunity to criticize.

In September Der Falter and Süddeutsche Zeitung began a content sharing “experiment.” Web design and data systems have been upgraded, both in talent and technology. What stands out, too, is a well-oiled social media strategy. Reporters - and Herr Klenk - are all over Twitter and the like with bits about developing stories. This is what’s called showing process. It works.

Austria’s most read daily tabloid Kronen Zeitung played a role in the Ibiza Affair. Far-right, populist Freedom Party of Austria (Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs - FPO) vice chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache was captured on the Ibiza video suggesting to the alleged Russian fixer that the newspaper could be purchased to provide yet a bigger voice to the FPO. On the video Herr Strache is heard saying that the FPO looked forward to “building a media landscape like (Hungarian president Viktor) Orban.” Kronen Zeitung has long held a populist orientation editorially. It was shown to reach 27.8% of Austrian readers, nearly as great as the next three publications combined.

Lifestyle magazine The Red Bulletin, published by Red Bull Media House, also showed an increase in readership in the recent Media-Analyse report. The Red Bulletin is published in several languages in several countries. It was launched in Austria 12 years ago.

See also...

• Hot Topics - Media in Austria