Tag Archives: Robert G. Picard

The Media Business: ‘Good intentions are not enough for providing news’

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Robert G. Picard, an academic specialising in media economics and management, takes a realistic look at journalism as a charitable enterprise:

“Many journalists pursuing new online initiatives are learning that good intentions are not enough for providing news.

“The latest group to do so is former Rocky Mountain News reporters who started rockymountainindependent.com this past summer using a membership payment and advertising model.

“The effort collapsed October 4 with them telling readers, “We put everything into producing content and supporting our independent partners, but we can no longer afford to produce enough content to justify the membership.”

Full story at this link…

The Media Business: Journalism start-ups are just one part of the future of news

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Robert G. Picard offers this thoughtful post on why journalism and online news start-ups may be one part of the industry’s future, but are not panacea to its problems.

“We need to be realistic about their potential (…) In the foreseeable future these start-ups will tend to supplement rather than to replace traditional news organizations. They may be part of the solution to the problem of news provision, but they alone are not the remedy,” he writes.

Full post at this link…

The Media Business: What’s misunderstood in the ‘end of journalism debate’

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…is that journalism is an activity, posits Robert G. Picard.

“Many of the voices and opinions, however, misunderstand the nature of journalism. It is not business model; it is not a job; it is not a company; it is not an industry; it is not a form of media; it is not a distribution platform.

“Instead, journalism is an activity. It is a body of practices by which information and knowledge is gathered, processed, and conveyed. The practices are influenced by the form of media and distribution platform, of course, as well as by financial arrangements that support the journalism. But one should not equate the two.”

Journalism the activity has historically adapted to new platforms and means of distribution, says Picard. But while many of today’s media companies may fold, ‘journalism will adapt and continue’ because of its significance for society.

Full post at this link…

Christian Science Monitor: ‘Journalists deserve low pay’

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…so writes Robert G. Picard in this CSM opinion piece that’s likely to spark some debate.

Central to Picard’s argument (it’s worth reading the whole thing before unleashing a response):

“Wages are compensation for value creation. And journalists simply aren’t creating much value these days.”

Full story at this link…

The Media Business: Is the journalism employment ‘crisis’ overblown?

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“Most journalists in newspapers do everything BUT covering significant news. They spend their time doing celebrity, food, automobile, and entertainment stories. Look around any newsroom, or just the lists of assignments or beats, and you soon come to realize that 20 per cent or fewer of the journalists in newsrooms actually produce the kind of news that most people are concerned about losing,” writes Robert G. Picard.

Full post at this link…