I thought I should say a few words about what I’m up to.
For the next year, I’ll be on sabbatical from Northeastern as I work on a book about how three business people who are passionate about newspapers are using their wealth to reinvent their papers and possibly to show the way for others. They are John Henry of The Boston Globe, Jeff Bezos of The Washington Post and Aaron Kushner of the Orange County Register. Kushner is no longer running the Register, but the print-centric orientation he took during his time at the helm has much to tell us.
My project actually became public two years ago when the Globe somehow got word. That item has proved useful in helping me to line up interviews. But only now am I embarking on the bulk of my reporting. I lost a year when I agreed to serve as interim director of Northeastern’s School of Journalism following the death of my friend and mentor Steve Burgard. Steve’s death was a difficult blow. In terms of the book, though, the delay may prove to be a good thing, as it seems to me that Henry’s and Bezos’ visions are still coming into focus.
I have a contract with University Press of New England and a year that should be (I hope) free of distractions. I’m excited to push ahead.
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Dan, A wonderful and exciting project, which I will read with great interest and enthusiasm. Will you still be doing your blog?
Thank you, @Marjorie. Oh, sure. I’ll still be doing WGBH, my blog and some other stuff here and there.
I can’t think of a more important project for an industry that seems to continue its free-fall and, frankly, for journalism schools like Northeastern, which are taking upwards of $200,000 from students to earn the “privilege” of working for $25,000 a year — if that — when they graduate, according to Indeed.com.