Journalism Major Project

Topic: Who will pay for Journalism?

I have almost 1000 words on how newspapers, radio stations and Internet sites can afford to publish and broadcast news content. From advertising to link baiting, the magazine-style feature articles outlines the traditional and evolving methods that support journalism. I have interviewed local reporter Alison Buckland who writes for a community newspaper on the Central Coast. I got some great quotes from her regarding online news, local advertising and content decreasing.

I also carried out a phone interview with Cec Bucello who is Editor of another non-for-profit newspaper and we discusses the readership and continual need for this kind of service and how funding can keep it alive. I am yet to receive any replies from radio and Internet journalists but will keep trying before the deadline next week.

Murdoch's War on the Internet

In an article by Michael Wolf in Vanity Fair (Nov 09) Murdoch's plan to charge for online news was questioned and somewhat laughed at. Wolf stated that "Almost all Internet professionals, on the other hand, think that charging for general-interest news online is fanciful". Emily Bell who runs the Guardian's web site called the idea, “Rubbish, bonkers, a crock , a form of madness.” Bell also said that the idea has been tried before, and failed. Newspapers such as The New York Times trialled a subscription charge for its columns but later declared itself free again.

I, personally, think its a brilliant idea, and one that if implemented with the initial arrival of online news, may have saved the newspaper industry from cut-backs and losses. Murdoch is an old-fashioned business man, who argues with his Google friends about why they don't read newspapers anymore. If he wants his papers to return to their prime, he needs to go to war with the Internet. The Internet is the leading threat to newspaper readership world wide.
Its free, its convenient, it isn't so wide you hit the person next to you as you turn the pages.
But it isn't traditional, and it is costing journalists and media proprietors dearly.

I personally feel that Murdoch should fight the Internet, whether or not he will lose.

Journalism & the Internet

I was chatting to a journalist I met during work experience today via email. It was at that point that I realised I'd been sitting at my computer for over two hours. Chatting, searching for assignment matterial, snooping at photos, reading status updates and so on. My journalist friend and I were talking about online news when it also dorned on me that within these couple of hours I had not once checked the news. However, this morning, over my weetbix, I had skimmed the headlines in the local newspaper and I will be expecting the Sydney Morning Herald on my doorstep tomorrow morning.

For a young, computer-savvy person who has never used the shut-down button on my pink laptop, I am pretty old-fashioned when it comes to my news. One of the reasons, I have realised, is because I want a career in the print journalism industry and I am subconsciosly supporting it thorugh my news habits.

I work at my local Woolworths store Saturday and Sunday mornings. It pleases me to see people buying the paper with their breakfast supplies. I have on occasion rewarded those who bought the spreadsheets with a now-forbidded plastic bag. But with Murdoch now profitting from online news, I better buy another three subscriptions and reward newspaper buyers with more than just a eco-unfriendly gift!!

The Laws and Ethics behind Journalism

This week's topic regarding the legal and ethical dilemma's surrounding journalism was both interesting and heavily debated. Edward Spence (2005:3) stated that ethics are ‘a set of prescriptive rules, principles, values and virtues of character that inform and guide interpersonal and intrapersonal conduct: that is the conduct of people toward each other and the conduct of people toward themselves.” Each person will make different ethical choices during their career. When discussing recent events that have been published, it became obvious that ethics, just as much as legal reasoning, must be taken into account firstly.

Examples we discussed in class were issues like Milton Orkopolous, Minister for the Labor Party back in 2005, having his private life and secrets exposed to the public. The ethical reasoning behind publishing such as story which would undoubtably ruin his reputation and career were highly founded. Those reasons behing that charges were made, and later he was sentenced, regarding child sex offences and drug offences. During discussions, ethical reasoning was that it was in the public's interest because he was an authority figure and leader and his behaviour was not up to par with his responsibilities. Also the nature of his crimes were deamed necessary public information.

Other issues we discussed were not so ethically sound. For example, Tania Zaetta has recently settled a lawsuit against the owners of the Daily Telegraph for wrongly publishing "Defence gossip". The accusations against Zaetta were not in the public's interest, were unfounded and predominantly sexist. The argument was made that if a male performer had sexual relations with a female troop, the story would not have been published.
Thus ethical reasoning is necessary and can lead one out of legal harm.

Truth and Objectivity in the Media

Today I watched an unexplainable piece of three minute footage broadcast on Channel 10. The piece began with a 20-something girl driving a Nissan Micra to an interview with a 3-piece girl band. As the "reporter" got out of the car she grabbed her high heels from the storage compartment under the drivers seat. A helpful arrow pointed to the draw with a printed "super storage" explaining the handy feature. The "reporter" asked the band members what they wouldn't live without. The girls gave these answers: the Internet, music and "my ipod". The interviewer than flashed her own ipod, demonstrating how her iPod fits perfectly into the glove box of her Micra.

This "interview" was obviously not design to plug purely the band or the festival they are playing at; but predominantly the very "hip" Nissan Micra. These camouflaged advertisements are not only deceptive to their audience, they spark the debate; is there any truth in journalism?

Payment Plan for Online News: Murdoch charges

Week Six Seminar Report

Rachel Morris announced that Rupert Murdoch will start charging for online content within the next 12 months. In her seminar about Online Journalism today, Morris stated that News Corporation will abandon a ‘malfunctioning business model’. This move suggests that Murdoch has identified the changes occurring within the media industry.

Since the emersion of newspaper in the 17^th Century, they have created a huge impact on government, social change and fashioned an increasing demand for instant gratification. No doubt this need for instant news and entertainment lead to the success of broadcast mediums; radio, television and now the internet. Perhaps Murdoch’s new payment plan is a sign of the shift from traditional journalism to online journalism.

The Internet has significantly changed the media industry; Morris suggests that online journalism has created the ‘multi-skilled journalist’. Today’s graduates need to be trained in photography, audio, video and website development whereas traditionally the key focus was quality writing. These skills are inherently linked to the audience that is increasingly evident on the computer screen.

Within 2009, as Morris asserted, concepts such as convergence and citizen journalism were acknowledged. Media companies such as News Corporation have engaged in convergence by supplying their readers with additional online information. The trend from paper to online has created the citizen journalist. With the incline of online news and the decline in newspaper subscriptions, the cost cutting hasn’t been surprising. However, even the lowest budgets can afford a citizen journalist, and many are.

Quoted by Morris, James Murdoch stated, in a 2008 debate, that “we live in today, societies that are constantly connected.” This connection makes it harder to market and harder to sell a product. However, selling news to a generation that is predominantly online seems too easy. It is undoubtedly obvious that Murdoch’s move will be duplicated and predictions for an online news world seem quite founded.

Journalism and the Global Village

This weeks topic was Globalisation and the impact on news.
It has been noted by many that the constantly changing world of technology and journalistic practices has created an uncertain future for the traditional journalist. Rhonda Breit calls it "an environment of uncertainty for journalists." (2008:213) A crucial element in this environment is transnational corporations (TNC'S) who operate globally but are regulated locally.
Borders are an issue on all fronts. "Many local laws are being seen as irrelevant as new technologies make their application almost ridiculous." (Breit.2008:213)

When the term global village was coined in 1960's its description offered positivity to a frequently threatening operation. The "linking of humanity in all parts of the world." (Kirby, 1998:3) How quaint. However the reality of the global village isn't. Of course, globalisation has its positive outcomes; freedom of speech. However, media saturation and conglomerates are not so peachy.

Breit talks about the effect of globalisation on journalism. Julianne Schultz has also researched the effect of commercialisation of journalists and their working attitudes. Based on her research Schultz asserted that "commercial priorities actively intrude on the idealised nature of the Fourth Estate." (1998:150)Breit even goes as far to say that a journalist's commercial interest comes before the public's right to know; changing the public agenda to a private industry agenda. Considering we live in a world dominated by US-based media owners, this public agenda is endangered by the agenda of foreign private industries.

Modern Technology and the Traditional Hierarchy of Journalism

Week Three Seminar Report:

Blogs, Twitter and You.Tube. Relevant or rubbish?

Today, Melanie Abraham gave a seminar regarding the controversy surrounding the future of investigative journalism, and the factors that threaten to kill it. The predominant threat to professional journalism; citizen journalism.

Citizen Journalism, as defined by Ms Abrahams, involves ordinary individuals playing an active role in journalism.

In the University of Newcastle’s third year class, the predominant argument suggested that citizen journalism was less bias, more thorough and greatly expanding. Qualities that could possibly lead to the extinction of the professional reporter.

Ms Abrahams argued that modern technology supports citizen journalism, thanks to tools such as camera phones and networking sites. "These tools allow the average user to disseminate information to a wider audience," Ms Abrahams said.

Not only do sites such as YouTube or WikiNews encourage amateur journalists to contribute information, but television networks such as Seven and Nine are jumping on the bandwagon.

The mainstream news channels invite citizen journalists to submit photos or videos to their program, reported Ms Abrahams.

From the moment that Citizen Journalist ambassador Jay Rosen spear-headed the term, these 'reporters' have been first on the scene. Events such as 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, flooding of South East Asia and the Victorian Bush fires have been documented, in most cases initially, by citizen journalists.

However, with this type of praise comes backlash from the hierarchy of professional journalists who argue that the term ‘citizen journalist’ should never have been coined due to their lack of skills or qualifications.

Ms Abraham acknowledged that many traditional journalists opposed the amateur’s right to report, edit or disseminate information to the public. She suggested that this snobbery was evidence of intimidation by the growing trend.

She explained that ‘open source reporting’ allowed media companies to hire citizen journalists to collaborate with professional journalists. An example she used was the online news source Ohmynews.com who pays 38,000 citizen journalists to contribute to 70% of the content. With the support of both technological advances and commercial networks, the traditional hierarchy of journalism may need to worry.