A wise person once said that we will either be the generation that kills journalism or the generation that saves it. This blog is about making sure it is the latter.
As an academic and former journalist, I have dedicated my career to finding ways for journalism to survive and even thrive in whatever medium engages readers. I believe that democracy depends on journalism and that the core values of journalism are as vitally important now as ever.
My doctoral work involved studying closely with an expert in organizational change, and I have tried to learn from the experience of other industries that have successfully managed the sweeping transformations of today’s increasingly wired world. While there is currently no magic bullet that will ensure that audiences and advertisers flock to news websites, theory and research show that it IS possible to foster an environment within newsrooms in which learning and change become an ongoing process as we figure out how best to to uphold our values in the new media landscape.
More recently, I’ve started to study, teach and practice in social media and entrepreneurial journalism, looking for ways news organizations can best utilize new digital tools and create news startups.
I hope to share the knowledge that I’ve accumulated and encourage others to contribute their own. My goals for this blog are as follows:
1)Disseminating some of the latest and best academic research on managing newsroom change, digital media, and entrepreneurial journalism in a manner that is easily digestible (and as free from Ivory Tower pomposity) as possible.
2)Sharing some of the innovative ideas of the many journalists I have the pleasure of knowing or teaching..
3)Providing some perspective from my own developing area of expertise as it applies to some of the latest news and issues in journalism.
4)Journalism education and how it needs to evolve to better provide the skills and competencies to help newsrooms change.
5)And most importantly…this blog is about STANDING UP FOR JOURNALISM. Like my former co-workers at the Committee of Concerned Journalists, I believe that journalists must articulate, and yes, even promote the values they stand for to the public they serve. I believe that while it runs counter to our instincts as journalists, the time to stand back let our work speak for itself is gone. We must not sell OUT journalism, but yes, we must SELL journalism — the principles of verification, independence, monitoring power, making the important news interesting, and others — that we try to uphold in all the work we do.
Finally, the bulk of my experience and my heart lies in newspapers, both those still printed on dead trees and their online counterparts, and this blog will probably reflect that, although I think journalism in any media form is equally important.
The views expressed on this blog are entirely my own.
The Changing Newsroom 