Boosting 'Emotional Engagement' at Tribune

The decidedly partial Tell Zell blog shares what it claims is new Chicago Tribune editor Gerry Kern’s staff memo outlining the role he sees the paper playing in the future. Kern is adamant about boosting "emotional engagement" with readers in a turbulent time for media.

It reads:
We’re now in transition to a new media environment. We don’t know exactly what this will look like or how long it will take. We clearly are moving toward becoming a 24/7 online business that also publishes in print once a day. 

Here’s what the memo deems to be "the essence" of Kern’s plan:
The experience of the news is as important as the news itself. We will strengthen our bond with readers by giving them the news, information and irresistible storytelling they desire in their lives. We will enlighten, provoke, surprise and entertain them. We want them to say, "This is my Tribune and I can’t get along without it."

Readers will embrace us as their Tribune if they see themselves, their lives, their circumstances, their interests reflected on our pages. If they see that we provide solutions to their problems, we will become their indispensable survival guide to the complexities of life. If they find our personalities and experts stimulating, enlightening and entertaining, readers won’t want to miss a single edition.