“Central Newspapers” Items

CNI’s Web Strategy Meeting, 1999

The March 15, 1999 memo titled “Web Strategy: Steering Committee Working Draft” was prepared for Central Newspapers, Inc. (CNI). It outlines a proposed strategic framework for how CNI should develop and manage its web presence across its various newspapers.

Key elements of the document include:

  • Need for Strategy and Coordination: Recognizing the fragmented and inconsistent web efforts across CNI properties, the memo proposes the creation of a Web Steering Committee to guide future development and unify strategy.

  • Editorial Control and Brand Integrity: Emphasis is placed on maintaining editorial standards and protecting the credibility of CNI’s newspaper brands online. The document highlights the importance of balancing innovation with journalistic values.

  • Business Goals: The memo acknowledges the growing commercial importance of the web and recommends that online efforts be aligned with broader business strategies, including advertising and revenue models.

  • Technology and Staffing: It notes the need for investment in technical infrastructure, training, and possibly new staff roles to support digital operations effectively.

  • Shared Resources and Collaboration: Proposes that CNI newspapers share best practices and technical solutions to avoid duplication of effort and benefit from economies of scale.

This draft represents an early, structured attempt by a traditional newspaper group to grapple with the implications of the digital transition, both operationally and editorially.

Retrospective (From 2025)

Looking back from 2025, this 1999 memo reads as a snapshot of a legacy media company at the edge of digital transformation. It captures the moment when the internet shifted from an experimental add-on to a core business and editorial concern.

While the memo does not predict the scale or speed of disruption that would follow—especially the impact of mobile, social media, and platform-driven distribution—it reveals a strong awareness that digital would require structural and cultural change. The idea of a centralized steering committee to shape digital policy foreshadows modern media governance models around digital ethics, product integration, and content monetization.

Ultimately, this document illustrates how media organizations like CNI were beginning to rethink their identity—not just as print publishers, but as multi-platform content providers. It’s a foundational artifact of journalism’s transition into the 21st century.

Technology Shifting, a View from 1999

In February 1999, I presented a forward-looking view of how technology could reshape the media industry. Speaking at the Interactive Newspapers Conference in Atlanta, I emphasized strategic use of technology, organizational culture, and evolving audience behaviors over hype or novelty. More than two decades later, many of my insights still resonate. This was the second of two speech I gave at the conference.  [The first can be found here.]

Here’s a summary of the technology speech transcript, created by AI

Content Strategy: “Author Once, Publish Many”

Finberg introduced a philosophy that still guides media workflows today: create content once and distribute it across multiple platforms. At Central Newspapers (CNI), this approach was powered by a database-driven system that fed content to print, web, fax, and even early mobile devices. The goal was efficiency and flexibility in an increasingly fragmented media landscape.

This strategy formed the foundation for today’s multi-platform publishing models, where newsrooms serve content to websites, apps, newsletters, and social media from a central source.

Technology as a Cultural Change Agent

Finberg argued that technology alone doesn’t transform organizations—culture does. For CNI, success meant not only installing systems, but also ensuring physical and digital infrastructure enabled collaboration. He pointed out how simple disconnects, like incompatible email systems, often held back real innovation.

His approach highlights a lasting truth: real transformation requires internal alignment and thoughtful change management.

Building Engagement with “Sticky” Applications

Rather than simply counting clicks, CNI aimed to boost engagement through what Finberg called “sticky apps”—features that encouraged users to return. Examples included personalized job agents, deep local sports coverage, and cobranding partnerships with other news outlets.

The idea was to deliver lasting value to users, moving beyond raw traffic to deeper loyalty and longer visits—metrics that are now standard in digital newsrooms.

Classifieds in Decline, Innovation in Response

Finberg was frank about the threat facing newspaper classifieds: “We operate on the principle that Classifieds is going away.” In response, CNI developed alternative digital products such as Work Avenue, Virtual Job Fairs, and HomeFair.com—each built around services and user experience rather than traditional advertising.

This proactive shift toward diversified, digital-first revenue streams foreshadowed the industry’s broader pivot in the 2000s.

Local Strength Through Strategic Partnerships

Finberg also emphasized the power of collaboration. He highlighted niche content sites, like “Indiana’s Game” for basketball fans, that partnered with other local papers for shared content and branding. Likewise, Arizona Central’s joint tourism site with the state showed how media organizations could pool resources to better serve users.

These partnerships created richer experiences and extended reach—long before “content syndication” became a digital norm.

Search as a Guided Experience

In a beta project with WaveShift, Finberg previewed a curated search engine that prioritized relevant, editor-approved results. The tool allowed users to explore external content without leaving the publisher’s site—supporting both user satisfaction and retention.

This approach reflected an early understanding of user-centered design and editorial curation, still central to quality digital journalism today.

A Forward-Facing Mindset

Finberg concluded his talk with a mix of humor and urgency. His key message: success depends on delivering real value to users while staying agile in the face of disruption. Technology should serve strategy—not the other way around.

Even now, as media organizations continue to evolve, his 1999 roadmap remains a reminder that the fundamentals—audience, content, culture—still matter most.

Named as IT Director

In February 1997, I was named as the director of information technology.  Here’s what the company newsletter wrote:

Howard Finberg, director of infor­mation technology, will direct the Information Services department for the next 18 to 24 months, effective Jan. 30, Vice President/Operations & Product Development Rich Cox announced last week. Sam Young will remain as Services director and turn his full attention to expanded responsibili­ties with several important Services issues and projects. Finberg will report to Cox on IS issues and continue to report to Publisher & CEO John Oppedahl on strategic technology issues.

A couple of months later, I wrote a memo to the IT staff outlining my goals:

As we discussed a little more than a month ago, the leadership structure of the information services department will be changing. During our first staff meetings I outlined my vision for the department. Since that time, I have had the opportunity to discuss this vision with many of you. Your enthusiasm has confirmed my thinking and serves as a guiding force towards our future. That vision statement is worth repeating:

“There are no system projects, only business projects enabled by information technology.”

To reach our vision, we need clear and consistent expectations. At our staff meeting I outlined those expectations. They are also worth repeating. An effective information services department:

• Makes sure all infrastructure works properly and is positioned for future growth.
• Develops a coherent architecture and clearly communicate its structure to the company. Standards can save companies money if they are applied properly; a poorly chosen standard or standards that do not change as technology changes can cost a company time and money
• Develops a team structure at both management and staff level. In addition, every team member needs to understand everything that is going on; you need to know more than your own projects.
• Makes sure that the company and its directors understand the full cost of the latest technology and the risks involved in trying to satisfy all demands all the time.
• Provides leadership, advice and it assists and works with customers so they can accomplish their business goals with a minimum of effort and expense.

 

Emerging Tools and Technology. Presentation in 2000

As vice president of CNI Ventures, I was charged with looking for and understanding new technologies that might impact the newspaper industry and, more important, Central Newspapers, Inc. I gave a presentation to the Interactive Newspaper Conference in early 2000 that explored a few of these new tools, including:

  • Brightstreet, a coupon site
  • NexTag, a shopping comparison site
  • Everstream, an audio streaming service
  • Kabango, an Internet radio
  • Palm Pics, a device from Kodak to allow the Palm Pilot to take pictures
  • Webphones, a Nokia device [way before the iPhone]
  • E-Ink, electronic ‘ink’ display [think Kindle, which used that technology]

Of all of the technologies discussed, E-Ink has proven the most successful.

Central Newspapers and Technology

This is a memo sent by Louis [Chip] Weil, the President and CEO of Central Newspapers [CNI] to newspaper analysts at Capital Guardian, a mutual fund. The memo was a copy of a presentation I did about the technology at CNI. As Director of Information Technology at Phoenix Newspaper, part of CNI, I outlined the various initiatives to harness technology in various departments.

Named Director of Information Technology

In September of 1996, I was promoted to a new job and new responsibilities; from senior editor/information technology to director of information technology.  As the press release noted:

He will be responsible for planning of new technology across the company and will work closely with other directors in the development of new products and services. He will report to (John) Oppedahl and will continue to have responsibility for management of PNI’s electronic distribution of information.

It was an important opportunity as it put me on the company’s operating committee. Here’s a link to the story in the Arizona Republic.

Mario Garcia on The Arizona Republic Redesign

The Arizona Republic’s redesign was an interesting exercise in trying to find a way to please a publisher who had the dream of making The Republic a New York Times-style  newspaper.  That meant he wanted a subdued approach to headlines and design and NO color.  Putting it in positive terms: classic design.

When the publisher of The Arizona Republic, Pat Murphy, commissioned me to redesign his newspaper, he had brought to our discussion a clearly defined blueprint of what he wanted his newspaper to look like: “Make it elegant,” he said. “Also let it look like a classic, reliable newspaper, one that readers will feel comfortable and safe with.”

Truthfully, I hated it.  Mario Garcia didn’t care for it either. He was very kind in an article he wrote for Newspaper Techniques, the monthly newsletter of IFRA.  He was also said some very kind things about me.

The Arizona Republic, is totally paginated (triple-I), which facilitated the idea of a half-column concept. Into the third month of the redesign, the newspaper hired an assistant managing editor for graphics, Howard Finberg, who came from The San Francisco Chronicle, and had served as graphics editor of The Chicago Tribune, as well. With his impressive credentials and experience, he became a full partner in the process, refining the use of informational graphics, guiding the every day logistics of the redesign, and hiring new designers for the different sections.

 

July 2000 CNI Ventures quarterly memo to Central Newspapers executives with attached investment summary and matrix

CNI Ventures: Investment Summary, 2000

As head of Central Newspapers‘ venture capital investments, I sent quarterly reports to the CEO and other senior executives. This one — dated July 12, 2000 — went to Chip Weil, Tom MacGillivray, Eric Tooker, Bill Toner, Karen Feldkamp and Chris Mitchell.

Attached is an updated Investment Summary and an updated Investment Matrix, which include current CNI Ventures’ Internet and technology investments to date. New to this list are JobScience, Legacy.com and Everstream

The memo also notes that indirect investments — the Sandler Capital funds, assets received as a result of the Homefair sale — are included in the summary.

The attachments are the interesting part. The Investment Update Summary lists the portfolio company by company: EntryPoint, WaveShift, Event 411, E-ink, BrightStreet, StreamSearch, GAMUT [SmartTV], JobScience, Everstream and Legacy.com, with $8,882,998 in invested capital against a current valuation of $9,119,411. Add the realized, partially realized and publicly traded holdings — Microsoft, Homestore and the Sandler funds — and total investments come to $25,613,452.

The Investment Matrix, which I created, is the most interesting document because it asked more than “what is it worth?” Each company was tracked against its target market, its relationship to CNI’s businesses, our working relations with the company, and which other media companies were in the deal — Knight Ridder, McClatchy, Tribune Ventures, Cox, Hearst, Gannett, the Washington Post. On E-Ink:

Development of an electronic newspaper and the business models to support product[s]

And the entry for EntryPoint, our oldest holding, is a reminder that not everything worked:

Dormant. PointCast technology; assets were purchased by an IdeaLab company

A $200,000 investment carried at $13,571.

January 2000 Editor & Publisher clipping announcing that Central Newspapers created CNI Ventures for internet and technology investments

Central Newspapers Creates CNI Ventures

In January 2000, Editor & Publisher ran a short item announcing that Central Newspapers Inc. had created a new business unit to handle its investments in internet and technology companies. The story was only a few paragraphs, but it marked a real shift in how the company — publisher of The Arizona Republic and The Indianapolis Star — thought about where the future of news and information might be built.

Central Newspapers Inc. (CNI), publisher of The Arizona Republic and Indianapolis Star, has created a new business unit – CNI Ventures – to handle the company’s investments in the Internet and technology sectors. CNI Ventures will focus primarily on investments that develop delivery methods for news and information.

The distinction E&P drew was an important one inside the company. The existing newspaper websites were not going into the new unit; they stayed with the newspapers, where they belonged as part of the core business.

Central’s existing newspaper Web sites, such as Arizona Central and StarNews.com, will not become a part of the Ventures division, but remain a part of Central’s core business.

The investments that did move under the Ventures umbrella were a good snapshot of what looked promising at the turn of the century: BrightStreet, described as a provider of online promotions management solutions; E Ink, a developer of electronic display technology; Event411, a creator of online event-planning tools; and WaveShift, a creator of systems and software for new media. Incpad, the company’s high-tech job site — until recently called Westech Virtual Job Fair, as the item notes — stayed with the main internet activities alongside the newspaper sites.

E Ink is the one that still makes me smile. In 2000, electronic display technology was an article of faith, a bet on a future device that would carry news and information without paper. It took a while, but that one worked out.

And then the last paragraph, which is why this clipping is in my files:

Howard I. Finberg, director of technology and information strategies, has been given the added responsibility of vice president at CNI Ventures in order to coordinate the investment committee.

Coordinating the investment committee was a different kind of work than anything I’d done in a newsroom. The timing, of course, is part of the story — January 2000 was very near the top of the market for this sort of enthusiasm. The idea behind the fund was sound: newspaper companies needed to understand and have a stake in the technologies that would deliver news next. The trick, then as now, was picking correctly.

Editor & Publisher Interactive column from January 1998 about New Century Network layoffs and PAFET cutbacks

About New Century Network and PAFET Cutbacks

This is a Steve Outing column written for Editor & Publisher Interactive and posted January 12, 1998. The news hook was two pieces of bad news arriving at about the same time: New Century Network had laid off 10% of its staff and refocused its work away from anything that might compete with its owners’ own Web sites, and PAFET — Partners Affiliated For Exploring Technology — had closed its two-person central office in Dallas at the end of 1997. Outing used both to ask a question that hung over the industry for years:

Can newspapers really work together in cyberspace?

PAFET was a six-company research and development venture — A.H. Belo Corp., Central Newspapers, Cowles Media Co., Freedom Communications, McClatchy Newspapers, and Pulitzer Publishing Co. Executive director Marla McDonald and her assistant were let go on December 31, but, as Chris Hendricks of Nando.net told Outing, the governing committees would keep meeting as before. I was on the operating committee, and I’m quoted throughout the piece downplaying the closing — the organization had looked at what it wanted to accomplish and decided it didn’t need the Dallas operation, and the decision wasn’t a budget decision. With McDonald gone, Outing noted PAFET didn’t really have a “point person,” and I suggested that informal title probably belonged to Joel Kramer, publisher of the Star Tribune in Minneapolis and chairman of the PAFET management committee.

The column is a good description of how PAFET actually worked: strategic investment recommendations that each company acted on individually — Zip2, PointCast, Firefly and Infoseek — and joint projects like the WorkAvenue classified employment site, conceived together but implemented company by company. The thing I was most pleased about, then and now, was the cooperation itself:

“We have learned how to cooperate, and that’s pretty exciting,” Finberg says. “From my perspective, we have to learn how to cooperate with each other. The days of dealing with a newspaper 1,500 miles away as competition are over.”

Outing also collected outside views. Randy Bennett of the Newspaper Association of America called the two stories “apples and oranges” — PAFET was about research shared among members, NCN was trying to build Internet services itself. Eric Meyer of the University of Illinois and Newslink Associates was blunter about the underlying problem of consortia with multiple masters, and about publishers’ attachment to their own brands:

“I don’t think The Associated Press would have been developed with the attitudes of publishers today,” he says.

There’s a personal footnote at the end of the column, in Outing’s “Movin’ On” item: as of January 1 I had become Central Newspapers‘ director of technology and information strategies, a corporate job I held while staying in Phoenix rather than moving to Indianapolis. David Allen, then information technology director at Indianapolis Newspapers, Inc., took over as director of information technology at The Arizona Republic beginning February 2.