Turning to the bloggers
Posted on July 21st, 2008
When I read something like today’s news that only 10% of American newspaper editors consider foreign news to be “very essential” to their coverage, I instinctively turn to the bloggers who I know will have something enlightening, thoughtful and sometimes profound to say. And that by itself says a lot about how news is changing.
Of course, I did read that particular news in a newspaper, although I was referred there by a blog aggregator. So, I’m not saying that professional news media are unnecessary or add nothing. Not at all. But the news ecology in just a few years has become 100% mixed.
I’m struck by the part of the article that says, “most papers report that their reporters’ blog posts are not edited before going online. A majority of the editors who took part in the study said they worry about a loss of institutional memory and journalistic standards, as experienced people leave the business and a younger crew of reporters publishes more news quickly online. But almost half the editors said they were more excited than fearful about the possibilities of the Internet.”
It seems to me that, together with an increased focus on what is happening within their direct, local frame of experience, the decrease in institutional memory and experience, and the reduction in so-called journalistic standards, conventional newspapers are adopting what they previously identified as the problematics of the bloggers! The Daily Me, indeed!
David, I offered some thoughts on the study here: http://www.ethanzuckerman.com/.....-and-ugly/
In summary – it’s a fascinating study and a real mixed bag for those of us fascinated by journalism in a digital age. There’s great evidence that bloggers versus journalists is, truly, over… and really bad news for fans of international news.
americans always think that they come first and then a loooong time nothing and thern maybe somewhere canada. news flash: the world is a very big place and most of whats going on is concerning us all.