Writing this week in Folio: , Matt Kinsman asks “Why Do Consumer Stars So Often Fail to Shine in B-to-B?” It’s no criticism of Kinsman, whose work I admire, that after reading this piece I could only ask in return, “who cares anymore?”. In his article he reflects on the departures of Richard Beckman and Michael Wolff from trade publisher Prometheus Global Media. Their effort to use their consumer publication experience to add luster to business-to-business books like Adweek and The Hollywood Reporter failed, he writes, because “useful trumps sexy.”. Fair enough. Now it seems merely quaint. MORE >>

What’s the way forward for journalists? Doubling down on the traditional ideals of objectivity and impartiality? Embracing the subjective, personality-driven approach of social media? Or is there some uncertain, ill-defined middle way? Those are some of the questions being raised recently by a number of new-media observers, most notably GigaOm’s Mathew Ingram , who’s lately been rolling out one must-read blog post after another. The problem with traditional news is that traditional journalists are increasingly unnecessary to produce it. But this, he says, is a “very, very dangerous” approach. MORE >>

Maureen Alley: Never tweet what you wouldn't say in person. In preparation for my talk in an ASBPE webinar on ethic s next week, I’ve been speaking with B2B editors about how they use social media. Though it’s true that the trade press in general is decidedly behind the curve in this respect, there are notable exceptions. One is BNA Tax Management editor and former ASBPE president Steven Roll, with whom I spoke last week (you can hear some of our conversation on his latest blog post ). Another is Maureen Alley, the editor of Cygnus’s Residential Design + Build (RD+B) magazine. Absolutely. MORE >>

Gideon Lichfield. Last month, I wrote about how Atlantic Media’s new online publication, Quartz , offers business-to-business publishers a new advertising model to consider. Since then I’ve been thinking a lot about another new model Quartz embodies, this time involving its content. Instead of the traditional editorial beats , its coverage reflects what it calls obsessions. Though this looks at first like a slightly precious and possibly meaningless distinction, on closer inspection, it isn’t. In fact, for the B2B world in particular, it is a crucial concept. I would go a bit farther. MORE >>

Doctorow: Productivity Terrorist? Some time ago I came across this comment from BoingBoing blogger Cory Doctorow that inspires both shock and awe: “As a co-parenting new father who writes at least a book per year, half-a-dozen columns a month, ten or more blog posts a day, plus assorted novellas and stories and speeches, I know just how short time can be and how dangerous distraction is.” Doctorow’s intent, I think, is to inspire, but his example is just as likely to depress. To the traditional print journalist, their new ethos of digital productivity is not just foreign, it’s al-Qaeda foreign. MORE >>