Moving toward a new model of journalism

Writing in the American Journalism Review, Professor Philip Meyer writes that,

The old hunter-gatherer model of journalism is no longer sufficient.

“Now that information is so plentiful, we don’t need new information so much as help in processing what’s already available. Just as the development of modern agriculture led to a demand for varieties of processed food, the information age has created a demand for processed information. We need someone to put it into context, give it theoretical framing and suggest ways to act on it.”

In other words, it is no longer enough for journalist to “cover” a problem. Journalism has to help identify options and engage citizens in finding solutions.

Link: The Elite Newspaper of the Future

Update 1

New models of journalism will require close attention to media economics, a subject that is not widely taught at journalism schools.  Matt Thompson, writing at Newless.org, makes some solid observations about technical, economic and social changes and “the business side” of the newspaper business. Very worthwhile reading.

Update 2:

The future of news will be decided in this generation.

A September 24, 2008, post by Howard Weaver also highlights the need to create a kind of journalism practice that attracts the right kind of people. He writes: When people ask “If you were my age, would you be in the news business?” I answer unequivocally, “Yes, and for the same reasons I got into it in the first place.”
* I always wanted to have a career that let me make a difference in my community, promote fairness, explain how things worked;
* I wanted to work around smart, articulate, smart-ass people.
* I wanted to have fun.
* And I wanted to feel like my life’s work had made a difference.

These are values that are necessary for journalism’s future. We need to think about creating the economic and technical structures — including the business models and corporate culture — that will support a new kind of journalism practice.