To Save the News, Look to iTunes

People expect their news for free these days, but online advertising revenue isn’t enough to support major operations, David Carr writes in the New York Times. But there may be hope for the newspaper industry. A decade ago, people began getting their music illegally. Now, the convenience of iTunes has convinced many consumers to pay for what was once free. Could the iTunes model save journalism?

“The notion that the enormous cost of real news-gathering might be supported” by online ads is “idiotic on its face,” an analyst notes. A few publications, such as the Wall Street Journal, charge readers, and Carr says he, for one, is willing to pay. Steve Jobs saw music as software to support iPod sales, and that’s kept the labels afloat. Now we need another Jobs to save the news.

(More newspaper industry stories.)