A visit to a passel of slow-moving, decades-old tortoises shows The Wall Street Journal eager to accelerate its video ambitions.
Gunjan Banerji, a reporter for the News Corp-backed outlet, recently traveled to interview hedge-fund manager Bill Perkins, and was able to feed one of the reptiles, which he keeps on his estate. She hosts “The Wall Street Journal Money Interview” — referred to internally as “TMI” — which features candid conversations about everything from how to manage family spending discussions to philanthropy. The first cycle consists of seven episodes, and, says Maral Usefi, head of video for WSJ, there is hope for a second.
The Journal, once known primarily as a print vehicle for business news, has in recent years had to grapple, like many of its contemporaries, with an accelerated transition to digital. As part of that effort, the company, part of News Corp.’s Dow Jones unit, is working to create video that executives believe will cement relationships with people willing to pay for its content.
So the tortoise’s snack serves only as an appetizer. The real meal, or so Journal executives hope, is to be found in monetizing a set of revealing, in-depth exchanges with people who have made a significant amount of money — and consent to talk about some of the challenges they navigate while managing their wealth.
“We do think this is a very strategic play for our subscribers, to offer them something elevated, premium and a conversation they can’t get anywhere else,” says Banerji.
Other storied news companies are also experimenting with video. The Associated Press, long known as a “wire service” supplier to newspapers, has expanded its live videocasts, assigning expert journalists to cover everything from the Grammys to the election of a new Pope. The reports try to give viewers a “you are there” feel and the journalist don’t overwhelm the moment with commentary, just light detail that informs the experience.
Key to “The WSJ Money Report” is getting its subjects to open up — if not their wallets, then the strategy for managing what’s in them. “We are very honest with each guest about what we want to cover, how deeply we want to go and getting buy in to really share specifics,” says Usefi. “I will tell you that not everybody is on board with that, and that’s OK. Maybe they are not the right type of guest for this particular show. We want a certain level of candor. We think that’s really what makes this show shine. We want people who understand that value.”
The quest for rich detail means getting Journal reporters to perhaps test new paths as well. Banerji previously covered such things as derivatives and municipal bonds. Now she’s contributing to CNBC and getting high-net-income subjects to show her their pets. “I had no idea when I got there that he had four giant tortoises,” she reveals of her talk with Perkins. “It never came up in our pre-interview conversations. But when he said, ‘Let me show you the tortoises,’ I’m never going to say no to that,” she adds, because such an encounter can spur “a wide-ranging conversation.”
The Journal won’t show the Perkins interview in full outside of its digital-media paywall. But it has made some clips available via social media to entice potential new subscribers. The company found interest in the video to be significant, according to a Dow Jones spokesperson. In just four days after the interview debuted, it became one of the highest drivers of new orders among so-called “gated” videos.
Banerji hopes readers have more interest. “We want to give viewers and readers a window into how the ultra-successful think about their money, no matter if they are in the C-suite or building a start-up for tomorrow,” she says.
