Convergence in Manchester

I had managed to miss the article on Journalism.co.uk about the success of The Manchster evening news in promoting the culture of media convergence in the city.

For the past few months you cannot avoid being accosted by Green jacketed vendors giving out free copies of the Evening News in the city centre.They are located in most strategic sites and by the time yoy have managed to avoid them,the Big Issue Sellers and the reps asking whether you have had an accident,you feel as though you have just finished a Ski Sunday Slathom course.

I picked up the early addition today,quite a compact title with abbreviated storys,leading on the scrapping of plans for car parking charges in the city after 6pm and at the weekend,which the paper has been campaigning on for some time.

It has also in recent weeks broke the story on congestion charging and successfuly campaigned to keep the wheel.

According to its mast,it reaches 76000 copies in the City Centre.Running todaty t 48 pages unfortunately missing the biggest story if unexpected that Manchester wins the Super Casino bid.

Besides the free paper,the group has the webiste and Channel M,broadcasting thru Sky Digital,cable and on terrestrial Tv.

Interestingly the group believes

What our part of the industry is about is generating stories that we break, rather than stories that are breaking. In that case you really have to start asking 'how do we tell this well across the whole group'. Not 'how do you tell it the fastest possible way' but 'how do you tell it in the smartest possible way'. That involves thinking about how you maintain the success of print as well as digital media."We should be excited by the new tools that are available but it's important that we don't forget all aspects of media. I don't subscribe to the view that print is dead. Print is a vital component of the convergence strategy."

"Now we have a great range of tools at our disposal. But it's not just about having it, it's about using it in the right way, and we're still learning about the right mix."We are still trying to do that fundamental process of journalism, which is telling the best stories. But I'd add a caveat. We're now trying to tell the best stories in the best way."It's quite liberating for most journalists, not only do they have the option of getting hold of a story but also thinking 'right, how can I tell this story in a way that is really going to have the best impact'."

The Big News in the city this afternoon is prominent on the web

MANCHESTER today hit the jackpot with glittering plans for Britain's first Las Vegas-style super casino.
In a surprise move, the city beat rivals including Blackpool and the Dome in London with its £265m plan to regenerate a part of east Manchester with a gambling mecca which would offer up to 70 gaming tables and 1,250 slot machines with million pound prizes.

With some quick reaction

Mixed reaction at proposed site
SHOPPERS at the Asda superstore facing the site for the proposed new supercasino in east Manchester today had mixed opinions about the announcement.
Edward Jones, 60, and his wife Susan, 56, thought that the creation of thousands of jobs was the biggest attraction.
The couple have lived in Beswick, the home of Sportcity, for the past 35 years and said the area had been in great decline because there was no industry left.

Mr Jones, who used to work at Johnson and Nephew wireworks before it was demolished to make way for Sportcity, said: "The regeneration has been a lifeline for this area because we had got to the point where traditional industries had declined and eventually disappeared completely.
"I can see why people are not happy about a casino being built here, but it's all about jobs at the end of the day. That has to be the biggest factor in deciding whether it's a good thing or not."