Apple as Censor

“Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one.” —Abbott Joseph Liebling

I’m tired of the argument that Apple is some dark lord out to censor the news industry via the App Store¹. If the newspaper industry spent the last 15 years investing time, money and attention into technology instead of pumping up their printed Living and Entertainment sections, laying off experienced, well-sourced journalists in order to protect 15-30% profit margins and ignorantly blowing off this whole Internet thing, they might have many alternatives to publish for an established and rapidly growing Internet audience.

The argument goes something like this: Apple ultimately controls the content available on the App Store therefor the App Store is evil.

It should read like this: Apple now owns a press².

But it’s OK for McClatchy, Gannett or Rupert Murdoch? Please.

I’m sorry that, as a whole, newspaper websites really suck. I’m sorry that the advertising departments within these newspapers are OK with getting their lunch money taken away. I’m sorry that many newspapers let their marketing departments RUN their websites. I’m sorry that publishers, who are effectively CEOs of their newspaper company, either didn’t understand, lacked vision or were handcuffed by their corporate media owners to identify and engage new and existing readers beyond quarterly promotionals to pump up circulation numbers that define ad pricing.

Instead of getting in on the ground floor in 1995, they’re trying to get in on the top floor now. Meanwhile, newsrooms and journalists are being tasked to solve business problems. That’s like asking an economist to treat an ulcer.

Now that they’re behind there’s not much left than quick or easy solutions. Apple and the App Store. Google and their App Marketplace. HP/Palm and whatever they come up with are just a few avenues but seriously, what would it take for newspaper companies to update their websites to look and act like something other than a shopping mall floorplan?

Yeah, Apple’s the problem.

My problem is how the hell did you let it get this bad?

Photo via The Triumph of Bullshit. Yeah, it’s computerworld.com but it could easily be any local paper’s website.