squeaking by on castro oil

A rule of thumb about breaking news: ask “so what’s next?” The more the answer leads into the unknown, the better the story is. Obvious, right? Last night on CNN they were obsessing over Castro’s health. I ask “what next?” and it’s not that unknown. At some point, Castro will die, it’s a given. But they spent a few minutes on content — how Cuba will react — and then it was all filler.

Video news is such a powerful medium, but it’s wasted on a 24 hour cycle. News comes in, you find out about it, and then you get on with your day. The killer app for news, IMHO, is an organization that groks the internet VOD, podcasting and IPTV. Sell subscriptions, get high-quality segments beamed directly into your cellphones and iPods, and be all about the information. Removing the requirement of being on-air all the time, and adding new layers of random access means you’ve removed the need for all the repetition and “entertainment” affectations that turn people off when it comes to television news.