Page 60 - AIB | The Chanel | Issue 2 2011

60 | ISSUE 2 2011 | THE CHANNEL
News Xchange, the
international news industry’s
annual conference, is
celebrating its 10th
anniversary this year. At a
time when the pace of change
is relentless in all sectors of
the media industry and when
media leaders feel a sense of
'show fatigue', News Xchange
MD Amy Selwyn explores how
the event can re-invent itself
ews Xchange was
created and is
financially
underwritten by
the European
Broadcasting
Union and
Eurovision. Supported by
sponsoring news organizations
from around the world, including
Al Jazeera, CNN, The Associated
Press, Reuters, RT, ITN Source, Sky
and others, News Xchange has
pursued a tradition of excellence in
delivering stimulating discussion
and debate. What a fantastic
history. This year, however, history
is being rewritten. Why?
When I met with Peter Vickers,
Eurovision’s Head of Marketing, to
discuss the plans for this year’s
event we agreed on two guiding
principles. First, we said, we have
to keep everything that’s terrific
about the event and that makes
400+ delegates turn out for it. So
that means interesting speakers and
moderators, diverse voices,
respected peers from around the
industry, engaging in conversations.
And second, we have to find a
way of taking those great
conversations and extending them
so they happen before, during and
after the conference. In fact, we
agreed we need to throw away the
idea of a conference altogether, and
reinvent News Xchange as
something more: more inclusive,
more inspiring and more
interactive. And ongoing.
ONGOINGCONVERSATION
“News Xchange has to live the
challenges of the news industry,”
said Vickers. “One thing we know
is that our community is talking
more and more of the need to
curate conversation. Conversation
is not limited to just two or three
days, and certainly implies more
than just a once a year gathering.
News Xchange needs to reflect that
N
Does news have to be funny in
order to get audiences?