With greater focus on written content

Jul 27, 2009 15:08 GMT  ·  By

With most of the old media outlets, at best, reluctant about the Internet or, more specifically, about the need to change their ways to survive, it’s good to see that some, albeit publicly funded ones, are actually embracing the web and are looking at ways to supplement their coverage with the fresh medium. The US National Public Radio is one of these organizations moving further in the digital space with its newly revamped site launched this week.

The site is aimed at moving the organization further away from audio with more emphasis on text consolidating NPR's stance as a news organization rather than just a radio station. The freshly written content is aimed to supplement and sometimes replace the audio content providing full stories to be an alternative to listening to the reports when this is not an option. To make things easier, the site also has some enhanced capabilities like an improved search and new embedding tools. Transcript of a part of the audio content is now also available and there is a general push towards more multimedia content.

However, there is no greater emphasis on video, with NPR deciding to hold back for the moment citing cost and a reluctance from the local radios that back the organization. “We are not expanding, but we are not pulling back either. We are being selective in our use of video,” commented Kinsey Wilson, SVP and GM, NPR Digital Media. “We absolutely should not be heavily invested in video,” added Vivian Schiller, NPR’s president and CEO, cited by the New York Times.

The site is part of a greater campaign for a greater digital presence with several new tools and mobile applications coming in this summer. While the push towards more digital content may be beneficial for NPR, some local radios, which partly fund the organization, may be worried that this may spur users to bypass the radios altogether and just use the site, something that the executives are well aware of.