Musings on Media Industry Transformations

So we're hearing a lot of talk about all the ways "The Industry" has been changing--reporters are forced to create an "image" and market themselves, market their "product" or news story similar to the way that musicians are being forced to through free online access, and how you can forget about finding a job at a newspaper if you aren't schooled in online basics so you can act as a backpack journalist.

This is certainly sounding the alarm bells for many--what is going to become of objectivity with all of this going on? they muse, as they see traditional journalism fly out the window. I've heard there are more opportunities for foreign correspondence in this changing feild--many newspapers are looking to pay for work from freelancers, as opposed to hiring their own correspondents. Kojo Nnamdi also pointed out that it is more dangerous for foreign correspondents now. Without an entire news team backing them up, journalists working out of "backpacks," by themselves without the presence of a news team are placed in a more vulnerable position in regards to kidnapping in areas of the world where journalists may not be popular.

All of this is, in my opinion, cause for some concern. It seems that at just the time when the world is facing problems of a new scope than ever seen before--terrorism, nuclear proliferation, global warming etc. etc. etc.--it is now when journalists, journalists who at least attempt to be unbiased, who have training and credentials, are most needed to help society sort through the myriad dilemmas we are now facing, and will certainly continue to face in the future.

It is interesting for me as well, as I can already sense the changes the industry is going through with my internship at the Washington Post Express. Though I know that interns generally perform smaller duties than employees, I still notice just how short, condensed and the work I'm doing has to be. With the squeeze on newspapers, it becomes more and more about "just the facts" and less about analysis and speculation.