Scary Times in the 4th Estate

Last evening I had dinner with 2 friends. The three of us each has a communications background and we began talking about the sad state of journalism. I have not posted much about the state of journalism. At times I have deemed journalism to be outside of the Web 2.0/KM topics I follow. But journalism IS strongly related to KM. Reputable sources of journalistic information are critical to individuals and organizations. Look at how the WSJ continues to succeed at a subscription-model for revenue because if its solid information.

Ultimately, the state of journalism affects KM as well as our basic liberties. Without sounding pompous, it is the journalists who have uncovered the corruption, scandal, and outrageous behavior among people which has helped to keep society honest. Who will do this in the digital fourth estate? My fear is that no one will. Unfortunately, investigative journalism takes time and no longer yields financial return for most newspapers.

I mix a few local anecdotes with some national ones for effect. The Allentown (PA) Morning Call laid off 70 people from the newsroom. This is a paper from a small metro area. It has a subscription rate of slightly over a 100k. How many people does the Call's news room even employ? Stories abound from Denver, Seattle, and other 2nd-tier metro markets about newspapers closing or moving to online only editions. Many small market papers, including the local Lancaster PA newspaper, have consolidated morning and late editions. While this might sound reasonable in the age of digital journalism, it drastically cuts down on the advertising space that keep the newspaper going.

The problem is that people do not know there is a problem. They think blogs and Twitter have replaced traditional media. So what if newspapers go the way of garment manufacturers, steel mills, and A.M radio, we have replacements, right? We can not replace the media with technology. Blogs, Twitter, and Satellite radio are only means to publish information, not create the content itself. If our media are only focused on Jacko's funeral, Brittany's rehab, and the latest success of vampire movies, who keeps us informed about serious events and happenings? Who produces the quality investigative journlism on regional and local companies, politicians, and events?

I do not have an answer, but I feel the need to keep asking the question. Consider for a moment, that the egregious behavior of 2008 Wall St and banking exploits took place with a strong financial media. What are the consequences for not having any real media to disseminate information and keep the arms of industry, government, and education honest? If corruption happens in the woods and no is there to hear it...is it really illegal?