Being a full-time journalism student, one of the most frequently asked questions I answer is “what are you studying?”. Generally, my response prompts a comment to do with the journalism industry ‘dying’.
We are constantly inundated with negative news about journalists. Most recently, Fairfax spending $500 million on redundancies and NewsCorp’s consolidation of production. As a young person working up three years of HECS debt to pursue a career in a ‘dying industry’, such news is hard to take.
It’s a very confusing time for media and communications students. The climate that journalists are operating in is rapidly changing. Out with print and television, in with digital news. Times are changing.
NeimanLab shared predictions for journalism in 2017 from those who already have their feet securely in the doors. They explored a myriad of ideas including digital reinvention, ‘selfie’ journalism and regaining trust. Several predictions created a glimpse of hope for me. They shared the idea of creating journalism that will restore value in our communities.
Washington based editor Liz McMillen predicts that it is about finding ways to “repurpose and repackage it, in the ways our audience demands”. She discusses the concept of ‘niche journalism’. That is, refining publications to meet the demands of specific audiences. Think Broadsheet, The Urban list, Fashion Journal. McMillian predicts failure within the industry unless journalists can take information and present it in ways relevant to individual groups within society. McMillen’s stance is that the actual content should remain the same, it is the delivery that needs to be broken down.
Similar in her prediction is Megan H. Chan, director of digital operations at the Washington Post. She believes the successful journalists of the future will be “those who can articulate and help readers understand who we are as a society”. That is, younger organisations who will focus on cultural journalism. According to Chan, they will make bold business moves and leave the investigative reporting to traditional organisations.
In summary, these predictions align seamlessly with notion that niche journalism is keeping publishing alive. Most importantly, finding a journalistic niche cultivates communities and supports minorities.
Such predictions verify our degrees. They prove that our studies are relevant. Our degrees aren’t training us in traditional journalism because it’s true, traditional journalism is shrinking. Yet, we are told not to worry. it is a matter of adapting to the digital trends of content creation.
1940’s ‘traditional’ newsroom. Photo by Phil Wolff licences under CC BY-SA 2.0
