Newsroom acquisitions can serve different purposes. Be clear about mission and strategy from the outset.
A newsroom acquisition can fit a number of ways into a station or digital newsroom’s mission and strategy. A newsroom acquisition can provide greater sustainability for an independent newsroom; it can expand coverage for a public media station; it can increase the digital brand and boost the digital audience of both parties. Our research revealed a range of purposes and benefits. Yet the most important element to acquisition success was explicit mission and strategy alignment between the parties.
Here are some questions to ask if you are a station or a digital newsroom considering an acquisition:
- How would this acquisition help us fulfill our mission? What values does it help our organization express? What aspiration does it help us reach towards?
- How does this acquisition fit into our strategy? Who can we reach and serve differently with this acquisition and why is that important? How will this acquisition help us fulfill our sustainability goals? What does this acquisition allow us to do uniquely that other newsrooms and media institutions in our community cannot do?
A well-executed newsroom acquisition can be the catalyst for station transformation.
Many public broadcasting stations over the past few decades have endeavored to build up their local journalism service through hiring more editors and reporters. But many stations have also struggled to build a culture of journalism that would deepen their reporting and local impact. Our work with a cohort of stations who have acquired digital newsrooms confirms that a well-executed digital newsroom acquisition can be the catalyst for the cultural transformation of a station into a civic news institution. But not all stations are ready for such a transformation, and not all digital newsrooms may want to be part of such a transformation.
Here are some questions for stations and digital newsrooms to ask as they consider an acquisition:
- What is the station’s baseline commitment to local journalism, particularly in digital forms? Is the station ready for cultural change in the newsroom and for an expanded role in their communities? Who is in place to help lead that transformation and what are they ready to do?
- What is the independent digital newsroom’s appetite for engaging in a change process? Are leaders and staff ready to learn a new culture and create new ways of working in a larger, multi-platform organization?
Leadership and turnover are key ingredients in making acquisitions work over time.
Post-acquisition merger processes are messy for any type of organization. Culture clashes, workflow confusion, and identity trouble are common stumbling blocks to successful mergers. We found amongst the research cohort that leadership and turnover are key ingredients in making acquisitions work over time. Strong and visionary leadership is necessary for charting a shared vision and keeping staff focused on what matters. Turnover is necessary for allowing people who don’t resonate with the changes to leave and allowing new people who can help create a new culture to enter the organization.
Here are some questions for stations and digital newsrooms to ask as they consider an acquisition:
- Who are the formal and informal leaders in the station and the independent digital newsroom? What are their strengths around leading change and what are their weaknesses?
- Are leadership and staff prepared for turnover and hiring? What processes can be put in place to help staff and leaders who aren’t ready for change exit the organization and find a better fit? What new people and new roles could be a good fit for a merged newsroom?
Acquisitions are not panaceas: they do not substitute for purpose, strategy, and leadership.
In turbulent financial times for digital news and in the midst of increasing pressure to deliver high-quality local journalism, the marriage of public stations and digital newsrooms can boost the sustainability of both entities by growing the audience and the service. But while this model has many benefits in the abstract, it is not a panacea. Without explicit alignment on purpose, strategy, and leadership, an acquisition will face cultural and workflow obstacles that can drag down both entities. Purpose, strategy, and leadership are also not one-time activities. Both entities must be prepared for a continual revisiting of the goals, strategy, and shared vision of the acquisition as a necessary ingredient for long-term success.
Here are some questions for stations and digital newsrooms to ask as they consider an acquisition:
- What is a realistic assessment of what problems and needs an acquisition can help solve, and what problems and needs have to be addressed in other ways? What level of agreement is there in those two categories?
- Are the parties to an acquisition ready to engage in a learning process together to refine strategy over time as the post-acquisition merger unfolds? What could that learning process look like?
Acquisitions require investment to deliver on editorial goals and investment to deliver on sustainability goals.
Acquisitions require more than the initial investment to legally combine two entities. Successful acquisitions require investment in the people and resources that can support a robust multi-platform newsroom. Successful acquisitions also require investment in the people and resources that can support multi-platform media business models. Without adequate additional investment in editorial, product, and business integration, an acquisition will under-deliver on its strategic promise.
Here are some questions for stations and digital newsrooms to ask as they consider an acquisition:
- What additional people and resources would be needed to deliver on the potential of a multi-platform newsroom? What strengths and weaknesses do both editorial teams bring to the table and what is needed to level up?
- What are the baseline levels of people and resources available to support digital sustainability in both entities? What kinds of skills, roles, and products are missing and what could be done to fill those gaps?
Acquisitions and integrations are stressful and chaotic. Successful integration requires time, resources, and patience.
Acquisitions are not for the faint of heart. They are often stressful and sometimes chaotic social processes that require time and patience. Not every issue can be predicted in advance, even with the benefit of outside expertise and resources. A willingness on the part of leadership to continually revisit and recalibrate how the integration is unfolding will help set the stage for long-term success.
Here are some questions for stations and digital newsrooms to ask as they consider an acquisition:
- Are both parties to an acquisition ready to commit for the long-haul and mobilize the patience and persistence required to bring an expanded newsroom to its full potential? What would it take (in terms of data, resources, personnel) for each side to feel confident making such a long-term commitment?
- What periodic reflection and troubleshooting processes can leadership of both entities agree to in advance to ensure that the acquisition is nurtured for long-term success? What milestones could both parties agree to?