Dave Winer made a point about journalists and blogs today that really rang true for me.
"I think pros like Markoff should also have weblogs, where they track the people and subjects they care about on a daily basis, so their readers, if they want to know more, have a way to get there. Behind every profile should be a professionally maintained dossier, so that readers with minds have a way to get and stay informed."
I consider most "news" journalism and "flat" articles that don't have hyperlinks, that is television and print magazine and newspaper articles as basically a form of entertainment, not news; this is especially true of technology journalism. Remember in high school when you had to indicate your sources on a paper? Well blogs and hyperlinked articles are like that. Even if someone doesn't tell you that they got info based on a press release, when you have Google to search against and other bloggers disagreeing it becomes pretty clear, pretty quick, what is news and what is just PR.
Ironically, television seems to be making a better transition to the ways of the web than print publications. Shows like NOVA and Frontline provide information and forums that supplement their programs. They provide complete transcripts that can be indexed and searched. They provide discussion forums where you can respond to the people involved in making the shows. They often provide additional interview and research footage that got cut from the final program; most of the time they provide transcripts of all the original interviews. Whether you agree or disagree with their conclusions in any given program, the programs are more than just entertainment, you can learn from them. Other networks and shows are catching on, but print media doesn't seem to have realized yet that they have to change their ways if they want to continue to provide value and attract a younger audience that is very aware of the web and its benefits.
9:15:26 AM 
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