Journalism’s Future

Remember Chicken Little?

This fictional character always proclaimed, “the sky is falling, the sky is falling” when it really wasn’t.

The same can be said of print journalism. “Newspapers are dying, newspapers are dying.”

It’s a problem the media is facing yes, but do journalists have to be so darn pessimistic about it? Instead of analyzing what’s wrong and how old media is fighting to compete with new media, why not physically do something? I remember in one class discussion, someone brought up a really good example: seasoned journalists who had been laid off from big newspapers banned together and formed their own online newspaper. I forget what the name of it was, but this is the kind of action journalism requires nowadays.

State of the Media brings up really good points that help support my argument.

For instance, the notion that the news media are shrinking is mistaken. If anything, the news media is expanding with the help of citizen journalism. Also, the majority of news is still coming from traditional news journalists. People are always going to have a need to know basis. Whether it’s local, national, or worldwide, people want and need to be informed of news and information.

The ranks of self-interested information providers are now growing rapidly and news organizations must define their relationship to them.

The struggle lies in how to turn a profit. Newspapers, whether online or printed, can’t function without funding. Government funding has been an option, and the BBC employs this function well, but it’s a questionable operation in the USA. Firstly, because American’s trust their government entirely too much, and are thus susceptible to betrayal and corruption.

Thus far, survival has come in the form of advertising, but as anyone who’s worked as a journalist knows, advertising clients are less apt to purchase online ads then printed ads—even though they have the potential to reach a greater audience with online ads.

The future of journalism is uncertain. So far, publications have started following a general trend towards online publishing, and this is a trend that probably won’t change anytime soon. I don’t see the journalism profession turning backwards and revitalizing printed newspapers. There is still a balance that needs to be struck between new and old media. As journalism.org points out, The future of New and Old Media are more tied together than some may think. Until journalists find that balance, the profession teeters on a knife’s edge.

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