Q&A Asian Correspondent: A 'sophisticated blogger network designed to show off progressive Asia', says MD

A new aggregator and news site launched last week, describing itself as a HuffPo for Asia, but with a difference - it pays its contributors.

What's more, it has put them on year-long contracts with set rates, rather than per page views, a model that some blogger news sites are trying out. But where's the money coming from? Display and textual advertising in the first instance, its managing director James Craven tells Journalism.co.uk.

AsianCorrespondent.com was just eight weeks in development and Craven, the former CEO of a B2B publisher, provided the start-up funding personally, he says, adding that he has 'strong investor interest'.

CEO for the last five of his 11 years at GDS International, Craven grew revenues from £9 million to £26 million, he says. But he stepped down and within three months has set up Asian Correspondent, inspired by his own interest in that part of the globe.

Initially a fifty per cent split between Associated Press content blogger content, the site aims to fill an Asian news gap, he said. It caught 20,000 unique users on its first day, and is hoping to build itself as a blog hub for the continent - it has 50 English-language bloggers in 13 countries to date.

Journalism.co.uk put some more questions to Craven by email:

[J.co.uk] Can you sum up AsiaCorrespondent's objective in a sentence?
[JC] A new concept in news reporting delivered through a sophisticated network of expert bloggers.
 
What's your main priority in terms of content?
Politics, economics, new media, green issues and some cultural and society pieces that show off progressive Asia - delivered through the eyes of our correspondents. I would  love to see a strong community dynamic develop among our readers where they use it as a commentary outlet.
 
Your offices are based in the UK & US: any plans to move it to Asia?
Yes, in a way, we are already there and I've been travelling back and forth. We have editors in Chang Mai, Hyderabad and Brisbane. In the new year we will open offices in Hong Kong.
 
You told us that display advertising is key, with possibility of keyword placement etc; can you elaborate on the advertising model a little more?
I think the options in internet rich media display are limitless and only restricted by your imagination. Advertising doesn't have to be offensive to the reader. We have already got some good relationships going and they are in sectors we feel are right for our audience. Sectors like education, travel, investment, regional development and personal technology have good synergy with our readers.

Say a user wanted to submit an article now, what qualifies them? Do they need to be a professional blogger or journalist?
No, you need to be a citizen of the world, a global worker! Our editors will have a look first though: we require accuracy, honesty and a reasonable standard.
 
Would you accept and pay for 'grassroots' material - e.g. a photo taken by a passer-by?
Yes, 100 per cent. Once again, standards apply.
 
Why do you think a payment model for blogging is necessary?
Bloggers like Bangkok Pundit, Rocky's Bru, Korea Beat, Jeff Ooi, Lonnie Hodge and others have written huge bodies of work in the last few years. They've built loyal audiences of between 10 and 50 thousand a week that read their stuff religiously. Most importantly, it's really good stuff that goes to the heart of the issue. Google may not agree, but I think that sort of performance is worth a reasonable pay cheque.

You said you're doing something new online, in new territory: do you think existing Asian media has missed a trick? Politically? Technologically?
Missed a trick?  It's mainly about the business model. The people working in media across Asia are fantastic. Printing and distributing across Asia is an impossible business model.  I tip my hat to people like the Economist who can cover the region so well through print. Far Eastern Economic Review [FEER, owned by News Corp, is  due to close in December] did not fail because of the writing staff, it was the executives who backed the wrong model.

Are you planning to employ an overall editor? How do you co-ordinate your written material?
Right now we have a really positive team dynamic without the command and control approach. It may be inevitable at some stage.
 
You mentioned in another interview [with paidContent:UK] there is potential for AfricanCorrespondent.com or MiddleEastCorrespondent: would those be your next developments?
We will see. Maybe go straight for world domination with Foreign Correspondent! Seriously, I've worked in these regions before and I love the idea of political and news reporting there using the hybrid news model. I think it would work very well and we have already done some tentative planning. Our first job is to reach the goals we have set for Asian Correspondent.

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