Are Search Engines the New News Boys?

If you've ever seen an old American movie, chances are good that at some point you saw the front page of a newspaper spinning toward the screen followed by a young boy shouting "EXTRA! EXTRA!" Newspapers are hardly sold that way these days. Instead, newspapers and online news outlets are increasing turning toward search engine marketing to drive readers to their web sites. The Wall Street Journal covers this issue today in an article that examines the growing cost of keyword advertising for media outlets.

From the article:

It's a challenge. I've spoken in sessions at Search Engine Strategies that had media outlets in the audience. While it's true that they can educate their journalists about the need to use keywords, there's little denying the fact that journalists cannot be expected to conduct keyword research and to make sure their articles are properly integrating popular phrases.

While it's true that most popular news outlets have enough authority to rank well even if their articles aren't fully optimized, the fact remains that it also takes time for search engines to find and index new content. That may mean an article shows up in minutes, or in days.

It's a tough spot to be in, but it's refreshing to see traditional media finally starting to buy into the reality of online advertising.