#digitalmediapublishing

[anastasiiabalyk]

The New York Times launches a Telegram channel

On Monday, March 14th, the New York Times has announced that they have launched a new, dedicated channel on Telegram. Telegram, an extremely popular app in both Russia and Ukraine, has been a primary social media for communicating information about the war between the two countries. 

According to Insider, Ukrainian officials have used the app extensively to both issue government statements and attempt to combat Russia's disinformation campaign, which is often spread through pro-Kremlin channels on the platform. The Times believes that utilizing this social media platform will make its journalism more accessible to readers around the world. Such a decision came after the New York Times went under fire on social media for not removing the subscription/pay block on the news related to Ukraine, while taking pride in spreading awareness regarding the conflict. Making a dedicated Telegram channel (which is free for any Telegram user) ensured that more readers had free access to all of the new coverage. Amid the digital isolation in Russia, this is also one of the few ways Russian citizens have access to non-government controlled media sources. 

Telegram, a messaging platform of more than half a billion active users, offers encrypted messaging options. It has specifically become the center stage during the conflict between Ukraine and Russia as it is one of the few platforms that cannot be regulated by the governments’ and reduces risk of information leakage. This platform is specifically popular amongst users who put great emphasis on data protection. Telegram is also largely popular for its group-based chat rooms where people can discuss a variety of subjects. WhatsApp, which is part of Meta’s parent organization, has also attempted to introduce group-based chat rooms last week, hoping to also regain its previous popularity in the Eastern European countries. However, since the company does share some of their data with its parent company, WhatsApp’s attempt to replicate Telegram’s was a major flop. 

[nealbizomedia]

Digital Media Publishers Move Away from Google-Supported Mobile Web Initiative

According to a recent article from The Wall Street Journal, major companies like Buzzfeed, Vox, Complex, and BDG are either testing or planning to use their own mobile-optimized article pages instead of Google’s Accelerated Mobile Pages framework (AMP). This decision is due to AMP generating less ad revenue for these companies. AMP was introduced by Google in 2015 as a  “way to optimize readers’ mobile-browsing experience” (WSJ). Companies like the Washington Post have already left AMP for their own platform to build mobile pages. According to the article, an exit from AMP would make companies less reliant on Google and slightly weaken Google’s strength in digital advertising. Google’s dominance in digital ads has even brought antitrust into play. A lawsuit in December 2020 alleged that Google has specifically designed AMP pages to make it harder for ad space to be auctioned on platforms other than Google’s own ad exchange (WSJ). For companies like Buzzfeed, dropping AMP could give them greater control over format/page design and facilitate them to sell ad space un reliant on Google. Additional reporting on this story comes from a Press Gazette article which states that as of last year, it became unnecessary to have to use AMP in order to get ranked in the most competitive spots on Google search results. This is certainly a reason why companies are planning to stop using AMP as of recent. However, AMP is still more lucrative for smaller publishers. Press Gazette mentions that for companies like The Sun and Mail Online, AMP’s fast page speeds and usability outweigh the downsides that are drawing bigger companies away. It is likely that the only companies that will choose to move away from AMP are the large ones that have the resources to go against the standard mold that Google has set with AMP.