News Train highlights evolving industry

Every day when I report to work,  I hope to give you an inside look into at least one or two businesses before I go home to my family for the night.

Today and tomorrow I'm in Coral Gables with East County reporter Nick Williams for the Miami News Train media conference at the University of Miami to brush up on my story-telling skills.

But I also saw the trip as a unique opportunity to give readers an inside look into the business of journalism, which unlike banks or real estate, you won't frequently read about in the paper.

There's an ongoing struggle in the industry over how to best keep operations viable as readership quickly shifts from the print newspapers, which we charge for, to our Bradenton.com content, which we don't. The primary business model right now relies on online advertising, a system driven by "clicks" or online page views in many cases.

Journalism always has been cut-throat, with reporters hustling to get the news correct (most important) and before the competitor (also important). The proliferation of the Internet has thrown that mindset into over-drive. The more quality stories you publish and the more breaking news you get first, the more page views you're likely to host on your website. That equates to the money that allows news companies to keep operating.

Many old-timers argue that model has changed the industry for the worse, with stories now just a three paragraph online post and a tweet before reporters move onto the next one. That's great, and it absolutely serves the community's vast hunger for information. But it also has made a lot of online news stories a mile wide and an inch deep.

According to presenters at the News Train conference, readership still is driven by in-depth writing that captures the emotion of the audience.

This weekend, we're learning better ways to deliver the best of both worlds -- throw up an online post, tweet about it, tell your Facebook friends, make a few calls and write a touching narrative for tomorrow's paper. Sprinkle in a multimedia component and you have full circle coverage.

That's what readers want, and that's what we want to deliver. Because essentially, the more readers and ads we have, the more revenue we have. The more revenue the company has, the longer I stay employed. That's simple business 101.

For the latest on all things business, follow me on Twitter @JoshSalman