NY Times' Leaked Report About Innovation

Lucky us! Someone leaked an internal report from The New York Times about the company's digital strategy. With logical organization, wonderful supporting visuals, and a precise writing style, the authors outline where the company is missing readership and how to get their "journalism to readers."

The report was written by the newroom's innovation team, which spent six months analyzing the company's position and identifying new strategies.

The Full New York Times Innovation Report

The executive summary begins with the good news as well as a clear goal:

"The New York Times is winning at journalism. Of all the challenges facing a media company in the digital age, producing great journalism is the hardest. Our daily report is deep, broad, smart and engaging - and we've got a huge lead over the competition.

"At the same time, we are falling behind in a second critical area: the art and science of getting our  journalism to readers. We have always cared about the reach and impact of our work, but we haven't done enough to crack that code in the digital era."

Discussion Starters:

• Who is the intended audience for the report? Now that it's been leaked, how might this group react? What might concern them-and make them proud?
• Analyze the report against guidelines in Chapter 10. What do you notice about the executive summary, organization, writing style, graphics, evidence, and so on?