The Future of Journalism

My mind has been racing around this subject all week.

Over the weekend I had a double dose of brain candy that got me thinking about journalism and where it is all headed.

I don't have any answers, but I wanted to start a conversation because I'm curious what you think.

First, I read The Nightly News by Jonathan Hickman which Clarence Smith Jr. told me I had to read. I rarely read comics these days, but anything he tells me to watch, listen or read I always do. After all he is the man behind BOLD Edition which if you haven't watched, read and viewed you really need to.

The comic focuses on the dark underbelly of the media at large and the length one organization will go to challenge it.

It is a great read that I suggest you all make time for. It isn't easy or happy, but it is powerful and certainly works the brain in directions you may not want to take it. I'm still pondering some of the ideas in the book because I agree with a lot of them even though their tactics are more than a little over the top.

Then, I finally got to watch Page One, which is a documentary from last year about the NY Times and how it is trying to evolve, stay current and survive in today's new world of media.

We all know that physically printed newspapers are folding up shop every day and it is a trend that I believe will continue. In five years if you want a printed newspaper, you'll be paying a steep premium to get one if they are even available.

But, with all this change I firmly believe that we still need journalism. We need long form, highly researched and fact checked stories on all sorts of topics. We need photo journalists capturing the moments of our time and shining a light on things people don't want us to see. Audio and video reports from all corners of the globe and close to home need to continue to be produced and shared.

I look at what my friend Dan Patterson is up to with his newly launched KoPoint as one direction for journalism. Dan is not just another blogger, he is a true journalist with the credentials to prove it. Yet, he doesn't report to any one master or editor like traditional journalists. He reports the news he wants to share and stands by his integrity and professional compass to make the decisions of what is "fit to print" or not. He doesn't have to work for a major network or publication to get his stories out there. THAT is the big shift.

Journalism won't die and for that I'm happy. The way we get our news is changing rapidly and I can't wait for it to be shook up even more.

The fact that I can't sit down and watch news without celebrity gossip and giggling people behind the news desk bothers me. I miss the days when the morning news shows were about the news rather than who is sleeping with who.

Where do you think this is all headed? In ten years where will be getting the news and how will journalists make a living reporting that news?

It is going to be interesting to watch, participate in and help if I can.