Murdoch dismisses newspaper “doom and gloomers”

News Corp owner Rupert Murdoch has dismissed as “misguided cynics” those who say that the internet will kill off newspapers.

In a lecture for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Murdoch said: “Too many journalists seem to take a perverse pleasure in ruminating on their pending demise.

“Unlike the doom and gloomers, I believe that newspapers will reach new heights.”

He added that people are “hungrier for information than ever before”, with papers having an advantage over other sources of information because they are trusted by readers.

“Readers want what they’ve always wanted: a source they can trust,” Murdoch said. “That has always been the role of great newspapers in the past. And that role will make newspapers great in the future.”

Murdoch said that while newspapers will lose circulation, online and e-mail delivery will open up new opportunities for established news brands.

“In this coming century, the form of delivery may change, but the potential audience for our content will multiply many times over,” he said.

“Our real business isn’t printing on dead trees. It’s giving our readers great journalism and great judgment.”

“It’s true that in the coming decades, the printed versions of some newspapers will lose circulation. But if papers provide readers with news they can trust, we’ll see gains in circulation – on our web pages, through our RSS feeds, in e-mails delivering customized news and advertising, to mobile phones,” he said.

Last week, James Murdoch gave a speech at the Monaco Media Forum where he too told listeners that the outlook for newspapers is not as bad as some seem to think (see James Murdoch: Newspapers need to innovate).

News Corp: www.newscorp.com