AR&D Reinventing Local Media

AR&D, an international multimedia research and consulting firm, has announced the publication of Live. Local. BROKEN News. The Re-engineering of Local TV, a year-long development project.  "Disruptive technologies have turned the business model of local broadcasters upside down," said AR&D president and CEO Jerry Gumbert.  "As an industry thought-leader," he continued, "we believe AR&D's leadership will provide broadcasters a much needed vision to step forward and begin to re-engineer their businesses.  Cutting costs is not enough."

AR&D's industry vision is multi-faceted and touches every corner of the business.  Gone is the star anchor, replaced by the news department's "chief journalist."  From the front office to the news director's chair, the industry needs leaders, not managers, and Live. Local. BROKEN News. strongly advocates why broadcasters won't survive without it.  Gumbert stated, "The word for today is leadership, not management, and increasingly media companies are awakening to the reality that they simply cannot manage their way out of the deepening hole they find themselves in."

The book examines new revenue opportunities far beyond the broadcast signal, like AR&D's Local Ad Network^TM concept.  It also reveals the workflow transformation process for functioning in a news cycle that AR&D calls "Continuous News to Finished News."  The Content Management Center^TM drives everything and leads a newsroom of multimedia skilled journalists to guide and shape the multi-platform, multi-disciplined delivery of content.

However, Gumbert stated, "the industry is still paralyzed by the fear of change and the unknown, but change doesn't seem as fearful when you have a formal strategy and roadmap to get you from where you are to where you need to be.  Simply put, change is the new normal."  From management to street reporters, AR&D presents a clear picture of the new responsibilities and skills necessary to meet the challenges of change with a sense of guidance, passion and purpose.  The book also explores the new tools that technology brings to the newsgathering table and creates the new roles for meteorologists and sportscasters.

Live. Local. BROKEN News. is being released on the eve of the 2009 National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and Radio and Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) conference in Las Vegas.  RTNDA President Barbara Cochran said that the book comes at a crucial time, when everyone is trying to "figure out" how to reinvent local TV.  "The specifics are here," she commented, "and the overall message is loud and clear.  It's not enough to do more with less; we must be bold enough to lead change while preserving the core values of sound journalism."

The re-engineering of local television is an ongoing process, a moving target that cannot be fully captured in a single book.  In conjunction with the book, AR&D is also launching a new blog that will continue the re-engineering discussion well into the future.

The book is also being distributed as required reading for university journalism and television curriculums where it will impact a new generation of video storytellers and journalists. To order an advance copy, click here.

About AR&D

AR&D is the premier strategy, branding and re-engineering media company in North America.  The firm has been a leader in the innovation web and television news, Internet revenue and news strategies, and marketing and branding tactics for more than 25 years.  AR&D provides a wide variety of consulting services and research products to national broadcast and cable networks, local television stations, newspapers, and Internet companies.

The company's Internet unit, AR&D Media 2.0, provides traditional media companies with a wide range of products and services used to expand their portfolio in web-based businesses.  AR&D Media 2.0 uses its proprietary Simulpath Strategy^TM to drive new revenue opportunities for both brand-extension and pure online businesses.

AR&D is a privately held company with offices in Dallas-Fort Worth, Boston and Tampa.  For more information about AR&D, contact Jerry Gumbert at jgumbert@ar-d.com or 817-924-6922.