The year that was

Or wasn't, depending on your POV

Welcome to the 159th (!!) and final edition of the Media Nut for 2020. When I started this little newsletter after I was laid off in April, I didn’t imagine that a) I’d be writing this every day and b) there would be 3,588 people who’d subscribe. Truly amazing, and I can’t thank you enough. 

I was looking at the first edition, where I outlined what I wanted to do with this newsletter:

It’ll be a mix of reporting and thoughtful analysis (some call this “insights” but that’s become industry jargon, so I choose not to use it. Also, you will not see the words “launch” or “utilize”). Because who doesn’t want more hot takes about the media business? 

The newsletter will get down and dirty into the mechanics of the media business, how it makes money (the buy-side; the sell-side; print, digital, tv, streaming; ad tech; you’ll get it all here, folks), but also lean on my academic background to bring some media criticism to the table. 

Over the last few years, I’ve been more interested in the reporting of the business, arguing that anyone can be a critic. This newsletter will have a dose of criticism, rooted in media theory, but also attempt to explain how it ties to the function of the business itself. Agenda Setting Theory is real, but press critics rarely tie the frame of a narrative to the business operations. We’ll try it here!

And while this isn’t a newsletter with investigative journalism at its heart, it will try to bring into focus the opacity of the media business and hold companies accountable. It will also have lots of Phish and Grateful Dead references.

I think I’ve remained true to these principles. (I also noted at the top of that introductory post that I hope it doesn’t take nine months to find a job. Welp.)

This year saw two important stories affect every aspect of society, and the media industry: the pandemic and Black Lives Matter movement. And these two stories will continue to be the most important stories.

(Image by Keith Mayhew/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

In April, the biggest story, of course, was the spread of the coronavirus (even as newsroom leaders across New York City fled to cozy Hampton houses as staff ran on fumes). Perhaps the most fitting personal irony: the last story I wrote at my former outlet, two days before I was let go, was about all the media layoffs that week. 

Estimates now put total media layoffs around 30,000 people, with 16,000 coming from the newsroom. This is not great for the industry, and the families who have to now navigate a world without an income and employer-backed health insurance, but it’s also not great for our democratic principles; you can’t hold the government and businesses accountable if newsrooms are gutted.

During the pandemic, while media consolidation picked up, so did new ways of doing business (though some stayed the same; awards are always a great cash grab). Sales teams learned how to pitch advertisers remotely, but also how to set budgets for next year. And since we haven’t left our homes in months, we also entered a new battle arena: streaming.

And as the summer unfolded, the story splintered to the Black Lives Matter movement and for the media industry, how to reckon with systemic racism. Newsrooms grapple with creating an environment that is both representational and equitable, all the while undergoing a reputation crisis as employees start talking publicly about the toxic environment they work in.

At the other end of the media spectrum, agencies and corporations spent all summer pushing out messages of support for equality but forget their behaviors and policies towards Black employees don’t offer the same support. 

This year also brought into focus how Google and Facebook have really crippled media organizations. And, if you want to be cynical about it, society. With both companies staring down the barrel of several antitrust lawsuits, calls to fix the problems created by the platforms grow louder; from a regulatory perspective, but also from the platforms’ advertiser-base of small businesses, who say that they’re getting squeezed. 

Oh, and there was a presidential election in the fall. (Still mind boggling that the most important election of our lifetime™ was not the biggest story of the year.)

When the clock strikes midnight on December 31 and we’re greeted with a new year, our problems won’t magically disappear. And the foreseeable future will be just as combustible, if not cacophonous as this year. But hopefully we can learn from this year to make next year a little bit better. And continue to build on improving our industry, if not our society. 

As for me, I’ll be back writing the Media Nut sometime in early January, and who knows, maybe I’ll actually get a job. That would be swell. (If you’re looking for a reporter, editor, newsroom manager, email me!)

I end each edition thanking you for allowing me in your inbox. I know a daily newsletter, often lengthy and meandering, is a lot, and I am grateful that you’ve subscribed. And in many cases, gotten to know you more through conversations. 

I also know that today is Festivus, a day where we’re supposed to air our grievances (and boy, do I have a quiver full of grievances), but all I can say is: thank you.

I hope you all have a happy, healthy, prosperous and safe New Year. 

As The Who sing:

“I’ve got a feeling ’21 is going to be a good year
Especially if you and me see it in together.”

Phish, “THANKYOU” (Tweezer Reprise, Harpua, After Midnight, NO2, Keyboard Army, Your Pet Cat, Once In a Lifetime, United We Stand)