Zombie Journalism

I’m not sure where newspaper execs are getting their PR advice these days, but whoever/whatever it is needs to be fired. The print news sector has put out some head-shaking proclamations this week – all of which have a common theme of holier-than-thou insults directed at online news consumers.
First up is the absolutely appalling handling [...]

Success in journalism doesn’t have to be measured by the size and fame of the publication anymore.

I’ve seen a lot of newsroom culture shifts in my admittedly young career, but the online deadline of now seems to be the biggest gap to cross. Many editors and reporters don’t think there even IS competition anymore.

If news websites were to get rid of anonymous comments, we may be eliminating the opinions of some very valuable (and young) readers.

We as an industry like to collectively wring our hands about the toxicity of online comment boards, but if we really want to improve the quality of on-site discussion we need to be willing to get involved in our sites in a hands-on manner. No amount of filters, comment-detecting robots and user-end moderation will replace the presence of a dutiful moderator.

The furlough – a company cost-cutting measure previously associated with the manufacturing sector – now embraced by those of us working in paragraph factories around the nation.
In the last year, my husband and I have had three separate weeklong furloughs (perhaps it wasn’t so wise to marry a journalist after all). These furloughs are, we’re [...]

The court case of Anthony Kirkland is showing us that while Twitter and live blogs and all that are great tools for enhancing the way readers get news, it’s tough to replace the know-how of an experienced beat reporter.

There is a lost generation of journalists, but they aren’t college kids. We are the generation too young to remember the successful years of newspapers and too old to live on hope alone.

Don’t bother reading Len Downie’s “Reconstruction of American Journalism” report. It’s long, it’s boring and it doesn’t offer anything new. Instead, check out its critics.

Social networking is supposed to be about connecting with old friends and making new ones. It can involve marketing products, but it takes individualized recommendations to be anything but spam.