In the Internet Age, the face of Journalism changes so rapidly that it can be hard to predict where it’s heading. Though it may seem impossible at times there are definitely ways to stay in the loop. For Journalists to remain two steps ahead there has to be a willingness to experiment and innovate with digital media. This is exactly what Neiman Journalism Lab do to keep the Journalism industry up to date.
The Neiman Lab aspire to keep with the latest online trends to keep Journalism fresh. Every year they publish their predictions for 2017’s contribution for innovations within Journalism. The most highly regarded people in the industry offer their perspective for what is in store for 2017. While there are a lot of interesting predictions there are two that particularly stand out.
The scathing prediction that editor Sydette Harry proposes demands a need for self-reflection. She contends that Journalism remains disconnected with the people which was evident in the controversy surrounding the U.S election last year.
Harry asserts that Journalists must steer aware from authoritative reporting and be more focus on representation. Journalism needs to be real with its audience so that the people can trust journalists.
‘This is the year that journalism stops crafting the history the profession wants, and deals with the history the profession has’ – Sydette Harry
Harry is right to assume that it is imperative that Journalists understand what went wrong during the 2016 U.S election. The ivory tower that Journalists keep themselves locked in seeks to only create gaps between person with polarising education backgrounds. The divide only creates fear and mistrust leading them to fall for the dangerous traps that are ‘alternative facts’ and ‘fake news’.
Focusing on the technical side of things, editor and developer Andy Rossback predicts that online publications need to rethink the way they present news. He says that poor productions makes it hard to differentiate between legitimate publications and ‘fake news’ sites. Slacking off on user friendliness to make more space for ads have substantially compromised the quality of online production.
Rossback sees a future where Journalism hires more developers in tech and design to create better content that invites people to support well-produced journalism.
‘So 2017 will be the year of the user. In the lifespan of digital news websites, it’s a tectonic shift from advertiser-first to user-first.’ – Andy Rossback
With the abundance of news subscription-based services and free apps, Rossback was certainly on point with his prediction. There is a noticeable trend where Journalists are using new platforms that use less ads and hone in producing better content.
Nieman Lab published more exciting predictions for 2017. Click here to know what to look out for in the new exciting world of Digital Journalism!
