The SF Chronicle reports that newspapers are moving beyond “shovelware”.
The truth is that newspapers have never liked shovelware and every online editor I’ve ever met was obsessed with creating fancy packages and special content to commemorate this or that. And virtually none of it sticks.
At this moment in the online publishing business, it probably makes more sense to focus on keeping overhead down and also on work that provides some kind of annuity in the form of a lasting business or creative benefit.
Instead of creating flash animations, custom audio, or slide shows, it might make more sense to sharpen your shovel. Convert your templates to use cascading style sheets. Or come up with some tools to encourage bloggers to link to stories on your site.