Publishers, Advertisers, and supporting vendors convened in Philadelphia, PA last week for the Suburban Newspapers of America (SNA) conference. I was among them as a speaker and representative of SAXOTECH to share ideas and discuss the future of media.

The backdrop of Philadelphia, and the symbolic nature of the city, was not lost on attendees. After all, this is the place where the power of media was used to establish independence a mere 234 years ago. 

What did media have to do it with the Declaration of Independence?

To bring the colonies together and establish unanimity in 1776 did not just require the eloquence of Jefferson and Franklin, or the intense debate of our Founding Fathers. It also required typesetting these great ideas to print. These revolutionary ideas were literally distributed as a press release to as many newspapers as possible. Printing and distributing the foundations of a new nation made them tangible, debatable, and viral.

Of course, now the digital age is upon us and media companies are wrestling with their influence in some cases, and their print product in most cases.

Publishers are asking themselves:

• How should we properly align resources?
• What is going to continue to attract and retain advertisers?
• How do we meet the demands of varying consumer preferences?
• Where can we find new sources of revenue?
• Should we get rid of the print piece all together?
• Is Steve Jobs right when he says it’s all about the application?

You may feel the answers to these questions are simple – Continue reading Media Makers Meet in Philadelphia →