Manifesto

From Media Re:public Forum
Revision as of 16:40, 15 June 2008 by Fonchik (talk | contribs)
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Summer Portal • Manifesto• Report Outline • Side Stories • Glossary
Guiding Doc • Case study format • Rejected text

Media Re:public Manifesto

The digital media age has brought fundamental changes to the ways news and information is created, disseminated and consumed. The availability of new tools and platforms has fueled a decade of explosive growth in non-professional online media that has irrevocably changed the news and information landscape. Ordinary people are able to share their writings and, increasingly, their photos, audio and video, with a global audience, in formats indistinguishable from well-funded professional media. Public figures are learning that with reporting no longer limited to professional journalists, nothing is really “off the record.”

Even as new media technologies reduce the costs of production and distribution, which ought to increase local service, financial pressures are pushing the traditional media in the other direction. The business model that once provided a closer though hardly perfect link between news and community has fractured. All traditional media, including public broadcasters, are re-examining the fundamental structure of their work, but in the short term, it is general interest newspapers, especially in mid-sized and smaller markets, that are hit hardest. A wave of cost-cutting and layoffs in the newspaper industry across the country is having serious consequences.

In their focus on survival, newspapers and other traditional media are struggling to fulfill their public service mission. They are failing to educate citizens on the world outside the US, in a time of increasing globalization. Cutbacks in investigative journalism and other in-depth reporting have weakened their role as watchdog and their ability to cover serious social policy issues like education, gun control, poverty, etc. As newsrooms shrink, some local media can no longer guarantee comprehensive coverage of local issues and events. And editors are struggling to insulate editorial decisions from commercial imperatives to retain and attract advertisers. Many hoped that the rich new participatory media world would address these shortcomings, providing extremely local reporting, engaging hundreds of volunteers in investigations, and linking audiences easily to global perspectives. But while online discourse is flooded with criticism of the traditional media’s failings, much of it valid, there is increasing evidence that the combined efforts blogs, community news sites, citizen journalism aggregators and professionally staffed online-only media are not filling the gaps left by the changes in traditional media structures:

  • community news sites studied are less interactive and open than expected, and both individual sites and aggregators focused on citizen journalism are falling short of their own targets for original reporting
  • most new online media are based on organizational and editorial models that are structurally unable to address the specific areas where traditional media is falling short -- international reporting, in-depth journalism and comprehensive coverage;
  • both the volunteer energy and the commercial money fueling the growth of new media is overwhelmingly skewed towards coverage of politics and technology, leaving numerous issues, geographic areas and populations all but ignored.

We believe that new and emerging digital media technologies do have the potential to create a news and information environment in the United States and other countries that is richer, more engaging, and more representative than anything that existed previously while ensuring the accuracy, balance and completeness that is key to an informed population. But evidence is mounting that neither the free market nor the wisdom of the crowds will make this happen; it will require coordinated efforts by civil society. It seems likely that entities not driven by the need for profits are destined to play a far larger role in the support of quality news media going forward. The eventual funding mechanisms will likely include mixed models drawing on such sources as crowdfunding, community and national philanthropy, independent editorial entities that sell content to advertising-supported publications, and related businesses that cross-subsidize expensive reporting.

We propose that the following principles should guide those interested in working towards this new media paradise:

  • Quality content is still king

Understanding and meeting the needs of the audience and supporting the creation of high-quality, original content that meets those needs should be the top priority. The value and availability of the content to its target public(s) should drive design, not a predisposition toward any specific media, technologies or business models or the interests or the existing capabilities of producers or organizations. To make this work, the same level of energy that has been dedicated to new modes of dissemination and organization of existing information needs to be focused on enhancing the practice of journalism by bringing new, multimedia reporting tools and skills to professionals and amateurs alike.

  • Integration is innovation

The ability to combine and collaborate with people, technology and institutions with different skills and perspectives is key to moving beyond the limitations of today’s models. The best projects will build on and combine experience and expertise from many sources: professional media organizations, community groups, technologists, freelancers.

  • Think globally

The US media system is unique in the world; in this period of change there is much to be learned from the experience of both advanced and developing countries. All projects should aim to incorporate the perspectives and and experience of other countries and multinational partnerships should be encouraged.

  • Support systems are key

Flexible, cost-effective networks, tools and services are needed to help individuals and organizations of any size and type the ability to undertake and fund complex reporting tasks. These may be developed separately or by media outlets who share them with the community.

  • Demand is as important as supply

We need to address credibility issues by helping the public become more sophisticated and demanding consumers of news, including the vast majority who will remain essentially passive. Representatives of underserved communities should be designed into projects both as consumers and as producers of content.

These conclusions and recommendations are addressed in more detail in the remainder of the paper. - 30-