4.4. Reader’s Notebook

I think this is an exciting time for journalism, but also a very scary one. The rules of the game, along with the definition of the game itself is drastically changing, and now there’s a divide between the younger and older generations. I think that anyone outside the realm of the field should not give their input, considering even the people in the field are confused on which path to take.

I think there needs to be a division between laws that survey print and online journalism because they are two different entities. I still believe there should be a narrow definition for journalist but the field of journalism should still be open to those who wish to engage. Furthermore, I do believe that social media has “swallowed” – as the CJR article suggests – all aspects of our lives. Now instead of letting news outlets control what news people see, social media giants now have the capability to do that. There are trending lists on Twitter and Facebook based on algorithms we will never understand to give us the best tailored news, but I don’t think it’s very well tailored. Everything is about attention now. Who has it, who wants it, who controls who gets it. Everything has become a game, but nobody taught us how to play it so now we’re left very confused and often ill-informed.

One thought on “4.4. Reader’s Notebook

  1. Of course Donald Trump was the topic of our “WTF” moment, but at this point I think our reaction should be less of a “WTF” and more of a shoulder shrug.
    It is frustrating but also promising that what defines a journalist is such a gray area. I do agree that some blogs should not be recognized as established news media because they do not adhere to our ethics. But I think we have to be more open and inclusive to what we consider a journalist because there are some long tail bloggers who should be considered journalists because of the content they produce and how they produce it.
    The Ten Commandments of Logic also apply to the field of journalism, as we should always act logically and not let our interests/emotions hinder our judgement. I think number six, in particular, is very important because simply assuming that there are only two sides may silence some and present a very narrow viewpoint.

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