A popular topic on the Wikinomics blog (see here, here, here and here), “the newspaper” has come under a lot of scrutiny (read: criticism) for everything from an outdated business model to an overemphasis on what many view as “pop” news, which often overlooks the real issues.

Amidst the criticism, I wanted to feature a couple points of light, hoping there are brighter times on the horizon.

First, following in the footsteps of the NYT, Canada’s largest national paper, the Globe and Mail unlocked its web content this past weekend, meaning that “Every Globe columnist, daily horoscopes, crosswords, Sudoku puzzles and a suite of news-tracking tools are now free.” The move has been met with resounding online support and will likely help the Globe meet the competition of Canada’s national network, the CBC’s increased online presence and scope.

Second, again lighting the way for newspapers in their foray into the digital, 2.0 world, The New York Times has announced that is working on creating an API to make the Times online fully “programmable.” The API, which is expected within the next six months, would allow for the “mash-up” of Times data, and while it would initially be available only to internal developers, it would later be released to external developers and programmers with an interest in leveraging the API’s potential. The Times’ Chief technology officer of digital operations, Marc Frons, says that “The plan is definitely to open [the code] up…How far we don’t know.” A successful API would benefit both the user, by allowing access to the Times’ tremendous library of research and content, while at the same time enabling the spread of the NYT brand to further corners of the Web.

While some might argue these moves are long overdue, they are certainly a step in the right direction and here’s to hoping the Times will again up the standard for progressive digital action in a dated industry.