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Impact of digital technology on professional journalism? - Tradewinds - 11-09-2012 09:25 PM
I'm writing an essay for journalism class on the impact of digital technology on professional journalism and whether or not it has made professional journalism obsolete. On the surface the answer seems easy - digital technology has made more people rely on computers and internet for news and entertainment, but then again isn't stuff like Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube all based on information gathered by journalists? These apps are simply a tool at mass delivery of information isn't it? What exactly is "professional" journalism?
I'd appreciate any thoughts and opinions on this topic.
Thanks.
- Writer_B - 11-09-2012 09:34 PM
Many people think journalism relates only to print, but when you think about it, that isn't true at all. Journalists report on events. They attend things and write about what they see. They interview sources and write about what people tell them. It doesn't matter if their story appears in a monthly news magazine, or a daily newspaper, or is fed to a news website. It's all journalism.
Fact is, digital technology helps journalists get the news out to the readers faster than ever. Even the smallest newspapers have websites. The website of a large paper is updated frequently during the day.
I don't put Facebook or Twitter or most of YouTube in the same category as journalism. Most of the stuff I see there is personal. (I mean, if someone's cat does something cute, it might be nice to read about, or see a video of, but I wouldn't call it journalism.)
But you're on the right track when you say that the internet is a tool of mass delivery. If a reporter is paid to report on the police news from your town, or attend the town council meeting, or write about local trends in your area, it doesn't matter if the articles end up in print, on the web, or both.
A professional journalist is paid for the work he or she does. Someone writing for Facebook usually is not. And blogs vary widely. Some bloggers work very hard on what they write, and do a lot of interviews and research. Other bloggers are typing random opinions from their bedroom in the basement, with little information to back up what they say other than what they hear from TV journalists or print journalists.
Professional journalism will never become obsolete. Even if the only thing people care about is whether Lyndsay Lohan is in jail or not, a professional journalist attended the court sentencing to write about it. How the news story was distributed is irrelevant. And while the industry will undoubtedly change, the skills involved in gathering information and writing it clearly and concisely will never become obsolete.
- Chloe - 11-09-2012 09:34 PM
I don't get it...