To the point: Bernese fair weather model
So what’s the latest on the Bern Model? In an interview with Werbewoche in January of this year, Polo Stäheli, then a member of Tamedia’s executive board and responsible for the Media Espace Bern division, said: «I still stand by my statement that it will be maintained as long as it proves its worth on the market.”.
So what is the situation with the Bern model? In an interview with Werbewoche in January of this year, Polo Stäheli, then a member of Tamedia's management board and responsible for the Espace Bern media division, said: "I still stand by the statement that it will be maintained as long as it proves itself on the market. But the fact that we would burden other media in favor of just one in terms of subsidies is beyond discussion. The sustainability of the Bern model will become apparent in the next economic downturn."
Tamedia Chairman Pietro Suppino and Espace Chairman Charles von Graffenried also expressed optimism about the takeover of Espace Media. They said that the Confederation would continue to exist as long as it was in the black and represented an independent publishing voice. The so-called Berner model has always been based on the fact that the Berner Zeitung (BZ) and the Bund are clearly different. The BZ is considered a local newspaper, while the Bund wants to position itself as a quality paper with background information.
The economic downturn is here, a media crisis seems to be on the horizon and thus the discussions about the Berner model are becoming topical again. According to an article in Sonntag, there are increasing signs that Tamedia does not want to continue with the existing Berner model. Apparently, people at Zurich's Werdstrasse are thinking about how to proceed. Company spokesman Christoph Zimmer told Sonntag: "A project group made up of representatives from all editorial offices and publishers has been at work since June. The project group is analyzing journalistic concepts as well as cost and revenue structures. An open and constructive discussion can only take place in a confidential setting. We therefore do not provide ongoing public information on the content of the project. However, we will provide information on an interim status in the coming months."
The continued existence of the 160-year-old federation thus seems once again to be acutely endangered. The Bern model was purely a fair-weather model. Everyone knew that, but no one really wanted to admit it. The profits were not exhilarating, but they were there. The company was in the black.
Today, everything is different. The economic outlook for the coming year is mixed to poor (depending on the experts). Saving money is the order of the day, so what could be more obvious than doing without a second daily newspaper in Bern? From a business point of view, this is understandable, but it is regrettable for media diversity.
Tamedia Chairman Pietro Suppino and Espace Chairman Charles von Graffenried also expressed optimism about the takeover of Espace Media. They said that the Confederation would continue to exist as long as it was in the black and represented an independent publishing voice. The so-called Berner model has always been based on the fact that the Berner Zeitung (BZ) and the Bund are clearly different. The BZ is considered a local newspaper, while the Bund wants to position itself as a quality paper with background information.
The economic downturn is here, a media crisis seems to be on the horizon and thus the discussions about the Berner model are becoming topical again. According to an article in Sonntag, there are increasing signs that Tamedia does not want to continue with the existing Berner model. Apparently, people at Zurich's Werdstrasse are thinking about how to proceed. Company spokesman Christoph Zimmer told Sonntag: "A project group made up of representatives from all editorial offices and publishers has been at work since June. The project group is analyzing journalistic concepts as well as cost and revenue structures. An open and constructive discussion can only take place in a confidential setting. We therefore do not provide ongoing public information on the content of the project. However, we will provide information on an interim status in the coming months."
The continued existence of the 160-year-old federation thus seems once again to be acutely endangered. The Bern model was purely a fair-weather model. Everyone knew that, but no one really wanted to admit it. The profits were not exhilarating, but they were there. The company was in the black.
Today, everything is different. The economic outlook for the coming year is mixed to poor (depending on the experts). Saving money is the order of the day, so what could be more obvious than doing without a second daily newspaper in Bern? From a business point of view, this is understandable, but it is regrettable for media diversity.
Pierre C. Meier, Editor-in-Chief
[email protected]
