There's a debate underway, in newsrooms, boardrooms, and classrooms about how to save journalism. That's right: save journalism. Here's why, according to a recent article in the New York Times:
The American Journalism Review estimates that 15 percent of the nation’s newspaper newsroom jobs were lost in 2008 as news consumers continued to gravitate to online sources and as traditional revenue streams dried up; so far this year, major newspapers in Denver and Seattle have folded altogether.At the same time, the shift from a print-based, scheduled world of media to a digital, on-demand world of options is changing how journalists do their jobs...At stake is a generation of reporters, and the continued role of journalists as the eyes, ears and questioners for the public."
The full article can be found at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/19/education/edlife/journ-t.html?_r=2
Journalism's future depends on those who can come up with a new business model to support journalism; it may depend less upon those who create content and more upon those who devise new ways of getting the audience to pay for that content, in other words, those with both journalism and entrepreneurial skills.
After reading the whole article, what's your take on this? (by the way, note that it contains a good number of quotes from Chris Callahan, the dean of ASU's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, who some of you met last week when he was here as the leader of our accreditation site team).
I think the idea of "paying for news" is outdated. Just from personal observation, I have seen that many people, especially my generation, get their news online. If people are told they would have to pay, they might just go to another website, even if ours is free from errors and contains the best journalism.
ReplyDeleteLike we've talked about in class, many people first hear about news from social media sites or blogs. This is where I think the future of journalism will be. I guess ads will be the primary revenue, because as I said above, people will just go to another site if they have to subscribe first.
I think the NYT article hits all the right platitudes about the changing environment while offering few solutions. I agree with the thinking that says the basics of storytelling are the most crucial part of a journalism education. Social networking may help distribute good stories, but a 140-character tweet is never going to replace fully realilzed reporting, just as changes in the health care system don't replace the body of knowlege that a doctor needs to have. You can look up medical info on a "free" website, but it's no substitute for getting actual treatment.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I'm not worried about the new revolution of story-telling that journalist face. In fact, having the outlet to tell news stories on virtually any platform is awesome. The only reason print style news is failing is because, well, everything about journalism is changing and people want to point and click to find their news. The everyday budget-friendly-person doesn't want to pay for today's news, but if your top news organizations charged a fee to send email/facebook/myspace/blog whatever news updates, people would buy- if St. Petersburg Times charged a small price for online newsheadlines, I would pay. In the journalist world you must be ready to embrace change and develop a relationship with your wide audience, otherwise you will loose your communication savvy.
ReplyDeleteI feel like "the sky is falling" idea in journalism today is getting a little old. Yes, we all realize that newspapers are outdated and people are not paying for news today like they did in the past. Unfortunately, many newsrooms have cut back on their staff, but so has every other job market. I think that newspaper journalists probably felt this way decades ago when television news became popular- people always fear change
ReplyDeleteHuge newspaper organizations need to realize that journalism is not an endangered species, it just needs a facelift to keep up with recent technological advancements. There may not be a need for huge newspaper staffs, but there is a need for photographers, videographers, web writers, bloggers, etc. As the story mentioned, it would be ideal if most of the staff could perform all of these tasks. People may first hear about news events through Facebook or Twitter, but I don't know too many people who specifically use these sites for in-depth hard news stories. They are great starting points, but there will always be a need for professional journalists who report news accurately, ethically and, especially today, in a timely manner.
I have never particularly liked the idea that journalism is a business. Don't misunderstand, I think that journalism is essential to a democratic society and a necessity in maintaining one. But, I never liked the idea that it had to be profit orientated. In all honestly, I think, over the years the business aspects have all too often interferred with the dissemination of information.
ReplyDeletePeople need information to self govern - I therefore don't believe journalism itslef will ever die. Like others have mentioned, we are just moving to a different medium.
I don't agree that a journalist needs to be the so called jack of all trades -and actually think that will be more harmful than helpful in the long run. I do believe though, that they need at least basic skills to accomodate the new shift, the new medium and the changing audience.
I would personally go for some version of a news tax - this to me, seems a logical way of eliminating special interest and profit orientation; it also puts the power back into the hands of the public - Making news for the people, by the people. But then again, no one wants more taxes, so I don't know how well that would go over.
Since day one in this program, I've been warned and warned again on the belief that print-based journalism is drowning with every keystroke and mouse-click. I disagree on some parts and agree on others. Newspapers are outdated in the traditional sense. Of course you're going to find those people who still have to have their paper and coffee at Lester's diner every morning. However with more people becoming computer savvy, it's safe to say no new newspapers are going to emerge and succeed without using an iconoclastic approach.
ReplyDeleteI believe that if papers were to change their layout and design and included brighter colors and give it more of a magazine feel, print-news sales would increase. People still subscribe to magazines or pick them up at the airport or what not, it's definitely easier than whipping out the laptop. Just more portable. So I think the newspapers need a facelift and could definitely look at leading magazines for visual models.
Even though it might not apply to all fields of media (advertising, PR, etc), I like the idea of training to become an 'all-platform' journalist.
ReplyDeleteIn the highly competitive job market, it is essential to branch out and make yourself a viable option to a variety of different employers. Whether its writing a story, shooting a video or uploading an audio clip for a blog, storytelling in today's media comes full-circle. Blogs don't come without an accompanying article. On the flip side, feature stories now always have a link to a related blog and social commentary for others to voice their opinions.
The technological revolution has made it easier for 'traditional journalists' to learn how to create websites and record podcasts. Even though newspapers have had to lay off thousands of staffers, some of these jobs become relocated to online/web positions.
I believe the biggest key in transitioning to New Media is maintaining a forum of social interaction with readers and writers. Keeping the citizens informed and making readers feel that their voices are important, too, in the form of blog comments and chat forums.
Newsrooms may have been objects of inflexibility in the past, but today the internet gives unlimited space to new innovations and wiggle room to even the most abstract of ideas.
There is no longer a reason to designate a certain track when multimedia has diversified and become a melting pot of print,TV,web radio and social networking.
Again, I find all this change in journalism exciting. I am nervous because I know throughout my career as a journalist (if it does become my career) someone will always come out with an idea or concept that is innovative and finds a firm hold in journalism and i will think, "Damn, I should have thought of that." But, that is what this world of new media offers, a chance to be a pioneer, to be creative outside of your reporting. The industry was sedentary for so long, and now it is booming, with the million dollar question, "How can money be made in journalism." To many journalist, the field isn't about money, but it is necessary for it's survival. I think the amazon kindle and the barnes and noble nook (if it ever actually comes out) are huge innovations for journalism. They have made people pay for news digitally. Instead of trying to adapt to "traditional" internet usage, via desk/laptop and phones, they jumped on to the creation of a whole new device geared towards nothing but the written word. "Damn, I wish I would have thought of that." journalist now have license to think way outside the box.It is in these moments when journalism seems to be doomed that people are allowed to break through and find the solution, harnessing the tools we have and creating new tools that will propel our ideas.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that many people will pay for online news. There are too many free sources for news offered online. Networking Web sites like Twitter and Facebook offer another news source for the public. I think the best way for news media to make money is to market themselves and rely heavily on advertising.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the print news business is going away as fast as society seems to think it is. Even though newspapers are shutting down, it's hard to completely eliminate a business that has been in the work for several (decades) years. That being said people don't like to pay for the New York Times on Sunday when it's $6, they'll just got home and read it online for free. I get my news offline but only from news sources that I've all ready grown a relationship with. If the news media wants to make money off of themselves they should start thinking about enhancing their other news options such as pay per click and blogging.
ReplyDeleteConvenience plays a huge role in the electronic use of online material versus print. Technology offers the portability of reading online news anywhere, anytime. A newspaper can be a nuisance to carry, let alone read when in a hurry, and let's face it, the pace of our lives is not slowing down.
ReplyDeleteAs we have learned, it is better to know it all. That is why an all-encompassing program with web, print design, and other software classes will help students in journalism move forward, not backward in their education in this field. It's not dying, it's just changing. And you must adapt to change to survive.
It is no doubt that the Journalism field is undergoing a sweeping transformation. As a result of the internet, the use of newspapers is quickly falling but, this does not mean that the field of Journalism is at any risk of failure. Like in recent years, Journalist are simply having to adjust themselves to the new technological advancements. The field of journalism is constantly changing and any journalist who wants to be successful must always be on their toes and keeping up new transformation. Journalists need to accustom themselves to the “new media.” Journalists have to learn new vocabulary and create a new relationship with their audience. Today, majority of individuals are not going to pay to get the news especially with the rapid growth of the internet and all the social networking sites which have transpired it is very easy to find news on various sites. That is why it is very important for a good journalist to be well round and knowledgeable in many areas.
ReplyDeleteThe demand for news is never going to cease. The audience has a constant and consistent desire to know the happenings of the world, and journalism delivers. However, because there are so many growing mediums in which the audience can obtain their news it is essential for any company/organization market themselves on all platforms. With the development of technology comes the development of change, and perhaps that is what we fear. Electronic news media, such as the internet or television, hold convenience and have become the prominent outlet for delivery. This does not mean that mediums like the newspapers are becoming completely obsolete, but rather, that technological advancement is resulting in the advancement of delivery as well.
ReplyDeleteI do not think journalism is a "dying art", but rather a changing and developing storytelling process.
The format of news and journalism is definately changing. We are moving to an online world. I would not be surprised if there were no print newspapers in 20 years. Luckliy we have already taken the first steps. More and More newspapers are online, that is the new directiion of news. Since twets are small they can not be the new direction of news. Papers like the St. Pete Times, the Nwy York Times and even the New York Post have the their entire papers online and lots of online advertising. I think this is the new direction news because it allows for more content and extra photos and everything people want for free, which is perfect fot this economy. Obviously this will to depend on advertising.
ReplyDeleteThe shift from a print-based world of media to a digital media world has been happening for a while now. However, people still love and buy the newspaper. I do agree that you should be able to shoot a video, narrate an audio clip, put up a website, write an article and blog about it. Do I know how to do all of the above? The answer is 'No'. I also agree with Mr Lemann, that journalism is like a three legged stool of skills, vaule and intellictual substance. If you have these attributes, you'll survive out there.
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