April Programme now also includes open Hitwise workshop

The key question for this month's Digital Editors Network meeting, as well the Journalism Leaders Forum on 29 April, is pretty straightforward: Where's the money?

To help us get some answers (and to phrase some more nuanced questions), we've lined up speakers from inside and outside the mainstream media. Here's un update on the programme:

Venue: Room 273, Greenbank Building, University of Central Lancashire in Preston. (Directions).

Parking: Several car parking spaces have been booked on the visitors' car park in front of the Foster Building. Participants who want to make use of these need to report to the attendant and say they are for the Digital Editors Network - he will show them where to park. (Of course, the venue is only a 10-minute walk from the train station.)

Agenda:

1-45pm - Registration & buffet lunch. (name tags are being provided following feedback from last meeting)
1:45-2:30pm - Peter Boler, head of digital sales at Manchester Evening News
2:30-3:15pm - Rick Waghorm, founder of myfootballwriter.com
break & coffee (15min)
3:30-4:15pm - Update from members, kicked off by Andy Dickison, who was recently invited to speak at DNA2008 in Brussles. If you'd like to contribute here, let me know.
4:45pm - move to Greenbank Lecture Theatre
4:30-5:15pm - Mapping the Digital Media Landscape - Anton Grutzmacher of Hitwise will give an exclusive update on what's happening to regional and national media audiences online. (This session is open and we'll be joined by the Trinity Mirror delegates on the Leaders
Programme and others)
5:15-6pm networking reception in Greenbank foyer
6pm - 9th Journalism Leaders Forum. Chris Anderson, editor of Wired magazine and author of seminal work "The Long Tail" will be joining the discussion, which will also be webcast live. See the Forum blog for the latest.

There is no cost for the events, which are being sponsored by the Journalism Leaders Programme of the Department of Journalism at UCLan.

Further details about DEN: Nick Turner, nturner@cngroup.co.uk, 07764 657037 .
To RSVP for the Forum & networking reception: leaders@uclan.ac.uk / 01772 894759

To stay in touch, join the DEN network on Facebook.

This month's meeting

The audience for media websites continues to grow, but can we make online revenues growing accordingly?

We often hear about the new ideas for increasing audiences and interaction on our sites, but what’s fresh when it comes to increasing the money we earn from those expanding audiences?

This month’s Digital Editors’ Network meeting on April 29th takes a detailed look at what media companies are doing to monetise their web offerings and how advertisers’ expectations are changing.

Digital editors from a wide range of regional newspapers and other media will contribute to the discussion with their own examples of good practice, but the meeting will also benefit from the contributions from three key speakers, each with their own perspective on the issue.

Ruth Spratt, digital and broadcast director for the Manchester Evening News group, will give an insight into how her company’s business model is adapting the challenges and opportunities of digital publishing.

Paul Bradshaw, author of the Online Journalism Blog, will report back on the recent Journalism Enterprise & Entrepreneurship Camp which looked at different revenue models for online journalism.

Rick Waghorn, founder of myfootballwriter.com, will also be on hand to discuss his views on how local journalism can be funded through contextual advertising – either supporting newspaper websites or independent writers.

Organiser Nick Turner, head of digital content for CN Group, said: “I’m really pleased with the speakers we’ve got lined up and when you add into the mix the views and experience from digital editors from all the big newspaper groups and it should be an interesting afternoon.
“It will be a chance to share experience in an informal discussion and in a way that allows us all to improve the commercial sharpness of our websites.”

The Digital Editors’ Network runs from 1pm to 5pm on April 29th at the University of Central Lancashire, starting with a buffet lunch. It is a free event, but to book a place and further details please email Nick Turner on nturner@cngroup.co.uk.

For those of you who want to continue the discussion and take surrounding broader look at the issues will be chance to take a broader view these issues the 9th Journalism Leaders Forum takes place on the same day from 6pm.

Entitled “Why isn't more media translating into more money for mainstream media companies?” confirmed speakers include Karen Swan, marketing head for Trinity Mirror Regionals, Anton Grutzmacher, head of client services at the market intelligence company, Hitwise, and Paul Bradshaw. See the Forum blog for more details.


Also: Link up with the Digital Editors’ Network on Facebook .

Further details: Nick Turner, nturner@cngroup.co.uk, 07764 657037