Saturday, December 4, 2004
THE NEW MEDIAAs promised, thoughts on Mark Glaser's essay at PressThink on The Media Company I Want to Work For. If you're looking for a succinct recap, forget it. Glaser touched off something that's still spreading. In that way, his essay is as clear an example as you'll find of journalism as conversation: from the original essay have come comments galore and ruminations at more than a dozen blogs. The old idea that the printed piece of journalism is an end point, or in any way definitive, is dead. Somewhere in all that's being said are dozens of ideas about what media can become. I couldn't begin to recount them. For those truly interested — and anyone who cares passionately about journalism and anyone who is looking to make a career of it should be — there are some links below. This is deep, deep stuff in that it takes on everything associated with journalism, from the way the job is done to how it is financed. There's no single conclusion (to steal and paraphrase a quote from an artist whose name escapes me, conversation is never finished, it just stops at interesting places) but there are at least a half-dozen possibilities for new ways of doing media, and information about a number of experiments that are underway or soon will be. For me, any number of statements in this conversation rang loud and true. If I took an overarching story from it, it is that (1) journalism matters but (2) it is not nearly all it can be and (3) somewhere in the mixing of the writer and audience it can be remade vibrant, vital and connective. Go read, starting with the original post (link above). But set aside plenty of time to work your way through this all, and even more time to try to come to grips with what it all means. Thoughts, reactions and ideas are welcome. Some links:
The last one contains any number of quotes from others and links to their blogs, comments, analysis. |
FROM UKRAINENicholas D. Kristof of the New York Times has ties to Ukraine — his father went to America from that country — and has discovered new feelings about the region. His latest multimedia NYT Opinion piece is Orange Revolution and Kristof, who covered the democracy campaign in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, says there are similarities. He calls on the U.S. to back those demonstrating for democracy on the streets of Kiev.
The piece is another sterling use of multimedia by the New York Times, and another demonstration that there are Big Media that get it. |
FIGHTING BACKFrom I Want Media:
Baltimore Sun Sues Governor Over Ban on Speaking to Reporters The Baltimore Sun Co. is suing Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich, saying he violated the paper's First Amendment rights by ordering state press officers to stop speaking with two of its writers. Good for them. When I was working as a reporter and editor, I'd come up against this every couple of years or so. Some over-inflated, would-be tinpot dictator would get it into his head that he wouldn't speak to any reporter who didn't report the news the way he wanted it done.
To resort to (really old) cliche: Fight the power. |
Last update: 12/26/04; 7:03:33 AM .
