Journalism Without Journalists: How One
German Publisher Experimented a Little
This fascinating paper by a fellow at Harvard's Shorenstein Center for the Press is worth a close read, followed by some reflection. "One of my motivations in founding Readers Edition came from the realization that most journalists would rather work the whole day summarizing various angles of a story gleaned from different news agencies than follow up on a comment or a tip from a single reader," the author writes. Whether you're a producer or consumer of news (or both), there's plenty of food for thought in this, folks. We're eager to hear your comments.
3 Comments:
John--I enjoyed this position paper, which was worth printing out.
I think that readers with discernment are desperately needed...regardless if they read online or on paper.
I believe that writers in any medium must balance creativity (the dance of words) with rock-solid facts.
As a teacher, I've found that (some) students seem to be less patient than ever with paper text...but they miss things, both on paper and on screen, due to impulsivity and rushing. I've taught in low-tech and higher-tech classrooms. Part of my job is to cultivate the good in rushing and to foster a "both/and" approach(greater care, mulling over words)...one cannot take that for granted.
Because so much opinion abounds in cyberspace and even bad information can "look" good...people have to be careful what they swallow.
Newspapers at their best can provide a form of quality control that some feel is more like restriction...but responsible reporting is so important.
Can mainstream media be resistant to new forms of communication? Of course...but newspaper(s) like other industries can and will evolve.
In general, in the blogosphere. I'm glad to see lots of people writing--even poorly--but some days I feel that if people spent more time talking (face to face), that might even be better in an increasingly isolated world.
Two cents...maybe three!
Wow, Maria, I couldn't have said it better myself. I love your word choice here: "discernment" is indeed the crucial thing, and it's a great word that we use too infrequently, no doubt in part because we've become less discerning as a culture. And your phrase about the dance of words is pure poetry, a reminder of your own great skill with the language. I'm honored to have such a careful reader and writer among my readers, and doubly honored that you take the time to add so wonderfully to the conversation. Thanks again, Maria.
I appreciate your positive comments, John!
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