Uncertain future has America's watchdogs concerned

Leonard Downie Jr. and Robert G Kaiser discuss the present state of journalism and its future throughout The News About the News, but sum it up best by saying:

Journalism can make a palpable difference in the community, sometimes in the entire country or even the world. The best such journalism is often produced by reporters and editors who have the luxury of pursuing topics they think are important without having to worry excessively about how much it may cost to report a story, or whom the story may offend. Those journalists work for news organizations that still have a mission of public service, which has long been the role of America’s best newspapers. But that mission, and the future of journalism that really makes a difference, is in peril (p. 62).

Journalism, specifically newspapers, is enduring trying times right now. The Internet, with its quick updates and easy access are causing problems for daily newspapers as statistics show that readership continues to go down. The new trend of large corporations purchasing daily newspapers hasn’t helped the cause either. Newspapers are slowly beginning to focus more on entertainment than on reporting the actual news, and good investigative reporting continues to become a thing of the past.
Yet, make no mistake about it, the newspaper sales of September 12, 2001 proved there is still a pressing need for good journalism in this country. People still want to be informed. The ultimate responsibility of a good journalist is to be gatekeepers. Journalists have to keep the people informed and present unbiased views of events and actions so citizens can make the best decisions to lead their everyday life. Whether people are getting their information via the Internet, radio, TV or newspapers; as long as they are informed then journalists should be happy.
The key for newspapers now, as Robert Rivard of the San Antonio Express-News states, is for good newspapers to “give them something that they can’t get anywhere else, that’s vital, that makes readers think ‘I’ve got to have it’” (p. 102).
So, the real question becomes how, exactly, do newspapers accomplish this goal without compromising their integrity or alienating adults, currently the largest age demographic of readers?
While the role of the journalist must stay the same, their writing styles must change. Straightforward stories, written much like wire copy from The Associated Press, isn’t going to draw many readers. The writing must become more entertaining. No, this doesn’t mean it has to turn into infotainment only, but the writing needs to be able to hold the readers’ attention passed the lead.
One of the biggest obstacles that must be overcome is the new element of citizen journalism. Between blogs, youtube.com and even the basic forum sections of numerous web sites, everyone is doing a form of journalism whether they realize it or not. They are writing or recording their stories, often considered news worthy.
Instead of being so concerned when a common citizen files a story that he did on investigated on his or her own, journalists must accept this as new form of tip. As technology has grown in leaps and bounds, the old form of a tip by phone call from an anonymous source is over. New era tips come from video recordings or blogs that are already on the web for the public to see. Now, the journalists job changes. They should find these compelling stories each day and run with them. Look deeper into them and use their superior writing skills to provide a more in-depth and intriguing aspect for their readers.
While combining new and old media resources and technologies to create to create something bigger, better and more profitable than the component parts hasn’t taken off yet, this idea of synergy seems like an ideal solution (p. 200). While it hasn’t worked particularly well because the newspaper reporters are having trouble fitting in, the public can get all the information they want when a site has headlines, video and audio clips. In order to incorporate newspaper reporters, these sites need to expand to include good investigative reporting stories or editorial pieces that are entertaining to its audience. Begin with a link to the basic AP story, especially for breaking news. As soon as a news story breaks, reporters need to quickly begin working and writing and their work can be posted in a short period of time right alongside the wire copy.
While the Internet is making things hard on newspapers, “at least in its infancy, the internet has disappointed those who predicted it would become a significant new source for original journalism,” (p. 218).
It is hard to say exactly what needs to happen and what the future holds for the journalism industry. As new technology continues to develop their will undoubtedly be drastic changes in the not-too-distant future. The role of a journalist remains the same; they are responsible for providing information to the public. However, at any given time a journalist must embrace other roles such as informer, educator, provocateur and entertainer as well.
“Newspapers must get better, not worse, to retain the loyalty of readers, and thus the dollars of advertisers. If they fail to get better, newspapers will continue to shrink—in size, in quality, in importance. This would be tragic, because no other news medium can fill the role that good newspapers play in informing the country,” (p. 110).
Now, journalists and specifically newspapers need the country to inform them. What is it that you want? What will make you happy? What will make you read?