THE CMO'S GUIDE TO BRAND JOURNALISM
Traditional newsrooms are hierarchical, command-and-control organizations. They have to be, because otherwise there’s no way to put out an entire newspaper every 24 hours, or a new version of Time magazine every week. There’s not as much collaboration as in other companies, and not as much emphasis on developing consensus. Journalists simply don’t have the luxury of getting together and trying to build consensus. In a newsroom, what the boss says goes.
The newsroom model is an efficient way to produce content. So as you’re creating an in-house media operation it makes sense to emulate this model while adding a few tweaks.
At the top of the newsroom there are two people -- the publisher and the editor-in-chief. The publisher runs the business side of thing, selling ads. The editor-in-chief oversees all editorial.
Below the editor-in-chief is a managing editor. Below the managing editor are section editors -- sports, lifestyle, features, news, local, and so on. Below the section editors are the writers, who also get ranked according to seniority.
Off to the side are copy editors, the great unsung heroes of every newsroom. Copy editors never get a byline, and rarely get any praise, yet they are the last line of defense against errors (or libelous statements) slipping into print.
Corporate newsrooms are more complicated than traditional newsrooms and have different goals. Reporters at a newspaper just write stories that seem interesting, and that they hope will attract readers. A corporate newsroom is representing a brand and ultimately has the goal of improving the company’s business.
Another big difference: newspapers thrive on controversy, and welcome it. Your company probably doesn’t.
In a corporate setting, stories must pass muster not only with an editor, but also with the CMO; the head of content, if there is one; the head of public relations; and the people who manage partnerships and relationships with other companies. In the corporate world, the editorial team functions as a service bureau, serving those stakeholders.
