Media Roundup: Newspapers Ask for Special Treatment in Google, Star Ledger Planning Unpaid Furloughs and More

Newspapers ask for special treatment by Google — A small invitation-only group of publishers met with Google’s Publishers Advisory Council and asked for elevated status among Google’s search results. The publishers, which included ESPN, Hearst and the New York Times, are upset that Google’s algorithm penalizes paid content. Many publishers, such as the Times, are considering sectioning off parts or all of their sites using online subscription models. However, money from subscriptions may be damaged by lost revenue as a result of unfavorable Google rankings. The publishers also believe that those who are highly ranked are unfairly rewarded over those who create original content. [Source: Business Insider]

Star Ledger planning unpaid furloughs — Executives at The Newark Star-Ledger have reportedly been planning unpaid furloughs that will last as long as two weeks. The news hasn’t officially been announced, but drafts of the announcing email were left in a Star-Ledger conference room and circulated among staff. The emails are a conversation between the paper’s editor and publisher planning the rollout of the furloughs. Last fall, the paper cut 131 staffers through buyouts. [Source: Editor & Publisher]

Hearst titles to go green — Every Hearst magazine will have a environmentally friendly theme this month as part of the company’s “30 Days of Green” promotion. The package will be sponsored by eBay. Hearst has customized all advertising and promotional content for each title. The company has done cross title advertising before, but this is the first time that every title will be included. As ad revenues have declined, many media companies are launching bolder and more unconventional advertising campaigns. [Source: MediaWeek]

Seattle P-I had buyers — The newly online-only Seattle Post-Intellegencer had buyers interested in saving the print newspaper, but Hearst was unsatisfied with the offers. A local group was willing to take over the paper assuming its debt and costs to keep it running as a newspaper. There were other offers, but the investment bank in charge of finding a suitor noted that because the paper loses substantial money, it was hard to find a satisfactory offer. This month the Post-Intellegencer has made the transition from daily newspaper with over 100 employees to a small online-only operation with less than 25 staffers. [Source: Business Insider]

Startup tries to monetize foreign coverage — As news organizations cut costs, foreign bureaus are often the first casualty. New news startup GlobalPost is attempting to plug the hole with a network of 65 worldwide reporters. The site will offer articles for free, as well as a paid section of their Web site. The paid section will be as a high as $199 a year and will include a voice at editorial meetings as well as calls and meetings with journalists. GlobalPost also hopes to sell articles to existing publications. [Source: New York Times]