“Product Management is the new journalism,” said Cindy Royal, Director of the Media Innovations Lab, Texas State University, at a lecture at the Asian College of Journalism on Wednesday.

“Product management refers to digital technologies that provide new ways for media companies to distribute information and to engage the public,” Royal said.

“Journalism has to sit on some product – newspaper, podcast, website. Those products have to be managed.”

She stressed the important role that Product Management played in new-age journalism, where the way news is being consumed has changed.

“What used to be video and television is now perpetuating on the web in different ways,” she added.

Royal mentioned the intersection of technology, user and business in product management, stating that knowledge of technology, especially of coding languages, could help broaden the scope of what a journalist does.

“The Idea of a journalist is changing”, she said. “It is no longer typewriters and video cameras. Now, people work on strategy, social media and coding. We need to change our impression about these roles in media organisations.”

On the impact of product management on traditional journalism, Royal said, “It will broaden the ways in which journalism will be done.”

However, the fundamental elements of journalism will remain. “There is a human connection in reporting and that has to continue. Social media expands the idea of field reporting,” Royal said.

“Product development has to happen in conjunction with the journalism that is happening in real time.”

She was speaking at a lecture on ‘Product Strategy, Management and Innovation in Journalism’ at ACJ