Jeff Jarvis and Distributed Media

Posted by: Heather Green on May 23

Chatted with Jeff Jarvis yesterday about his decision to quit his job and focus on citizens’ media. It was cold and wet here in Manhattan, though Jarvis said the sun had just broke at his house in New Jersey. Turns out, that was a metaphor for our chat. Jarvis explained that he had been itching to remake his life after his close call on Sept. 11. Jarvis turned to blogging with a vengeance after that. And now that outlet is providing him with the connections, the brand, and the inspiration to leave his job and throw himself into figuring out the world of distributed media.

Jarvis explained that about 50% of his time will be spent as a consultant on content development at About.com, the service that the New York Times bought in February. But he’s also hoping to help mold About’s business strategy. He would like to see its 500 guides used as “a platform for distributed media,” where the guides develop relationships with blogs. For instance, a travel guide could work together with a host of travel blogs to cover the landscape.

The rest of the time will be spent writing a book, which he plans to publish as he writes it on his blog to get feedback, and consulting with Advance.net, where he used to work. Jarvis was mum on the new news startup he’s working with, other than to say they’re raising venture money now and plan to debut later this year.

For the interview, read on:

Q: So why did you decide to leave Advance? Were you simply tired of the job or did you have any issues there?

Advance has been great, people always say that, but it's true, I got to be involved with creating online brands. But, really, blogging changed my life. I debated doing a lot of things, do I want to go another job like the one I have at Advance? I have been a lifelong wage slave, so it's the first reflex I had. I decided I didn't want to do one thing and so started thinking, and talking with Martin Nisenholtz at the New York Times Digital. He has lead the industry in online news.

I had questioned their purchase of About on my blog, but Martin explained, you're getting it wrong, it's a platform. And I had been working with the other startup (which Jarvis described on his blog as a new news start-up founded by Upendra Shardanand, who helped create the software agent and recommendation service Firefly that was later sold to Microsoft). I have been friendly with them for a while, and I have doing things with CUNY (The new graduate journalism school at the City University of New York). Plus I want to write a book. All that sounded better to me than taking one job. I want to do things that are involved with changing media.

Q: Why do that outside of Advance Publications?
I have done this job for 10 1/2 years. I was involved primarily with the newspapers sites, but what's necessary now is figuring out the next generation of news. That means being a change agent in the news room, and that's not what I do. The nitty gritty work that's necessary now in the newsrooms isn't for me.

And once I had seen what was happening as we hand news over to the citizens, I wanted to be involved in that, I want to be involved in the new frontier wholly. Something Jay Rosen said last year [struck me]. Jay was a pioneer in public journalism. He thought that that was going to come from within, but now he realizes it's going to come from without.

Q: Do you think newspapers will figure out how they need to change?
There has been a substantial change in news organization over the past year. There isn't the resistance that there used to be. Yes, I think they will figure it out.

Q: I see. Basically, this part of the change within established newsrooms doesn't fit your personality.
I have been involved in startups, but buckling down and being the guy to manage change, that isn't me.

Q: What are you excited about being involved with?
The world of centralized marketplace is yielding to distributed news. Our new role is finding new ways to aggregate. I am hoping there are ways to set up ad hoc networks. I want to enable good things to happen and allow people to be supported, with training, content sharing, etc. About starts with this incredible army of people putting out 500 guides. It's my hope that they can become a platform for distributed media. A locus and starting point for new and great things.

For instance, if you have a leading travel guide at about, what kinds of relationships can it have with other points of distributed media. I don't know what that adds up to, but I think it can add up to interesting thing. We have to think about working with folks in training and promotion and revenue generation. Bloggers who will continue to do what they do, Advertisers want to figure out to put together these distributed networks. I want to try to tackle those things.

I am only going to consult on content. The potential is About has that platform for this kind of distributed media. There are resources there. The primary idea is to be an editor guy, to work with them on that and then see if I have other good ideas and ways to expand that. That will be about 1/2 my time.

Q: And the rest of the time?
There is the news startup (with Upendra Shardanand.) He had mentioned this idea to me a year ago, it was an idea he was planning to put together. It was a collaboration over lunch, talking about it and thinking it through. He now has the beginnings of a team, and he is fundraising now and doing an angel round. It will be up this year.

Then the book idea is to try to write it on the blog. And hoping to get paid for some consulting. Plenty of people call now, ask can you give us advice for a day. Getting paid for the would be great. I plan to keep doing the MSNBC thing.

Blogging has changed my career because it changed the way I looked at the media and the press but it also helped because it helped brand me. It creates new opportunities, it's an opportunity to be what you are online.

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