Let’s Bail Out 8-track Manufacturers, Too

Before MP3s, CDs, or cassette tapes, there were 8-tracks. But you don’t hear much about 8-tracks anymore, unless someone is being nostalgic or making a point.

What happened? In one word: competition. The emergence of cassette tapes, and the 8-tracks inability to compete, made the format obsolete. The reliability of early cassettes and the quality of the sound meant that 8-tracks had an advantage, but cassettes caught up and 8-tracks stayed the same. There was little reason to stick to the rigidity of of 8-tracks.

Same with Laserdisc. The “exciting” technology had higher quality image than its rivals. However, Laserdiscs cost more than VHS, and manufacturers refused to market recordable Laserdisc devices. The format died out because it refused to be flexible and cater to consumer’s needs.

Sound familiar?

President Obama is now hinting at giving newspapers a bailout. Why? He fears that only opinionated blogs will report news.

As far as the problem with “opinionated” perspectives, John Stossel makes a good point in Reason Magazine today summarized in the subtitle of the article, “Every reporter has political beliefs“. So whether you get a reporter or a blogger won’t make a difference—they’re going to be opinionated. But there certainly isn’t a shortage of news.

Consumers expect more, and different, and cheaper news than newspapers are currently providing. Of course, the old media formats make us feel nostalgic. (I don’t need to feel nostalgic, because I have a Laserdisc player at home.) But the question is, are they necessary?

That question could be best solved by looking at the progress of music and video delivery. Did music cease to exist because 8-tracks did? No, in fact, we now have more choices in portable music formats than ever, and formats that allow us to edit and make our own music. Was the quality of video threatened when people stopped buying Laserdisc? Hardly, and again, we have choices and editable formats as to how we receive our video.

Newspapers can survive if they learn from 8-tracks and Laserdisc: they need to remain reliable, meet the quality and timing of online news, and become responsive to consumer’s needs. This is why blogs flourished. Regardless, there is no danger in newspapers going bankrupt. Newspapers existed to solve a problem, and that was the problem of how to relay information across varying groups and locations. But those were different times. Now we have the internet, and people willing to take on the task of providing commentary and news on their own times. A bailout for newspapers is certainly not necessary to keep citizens informed.