Journalism: what changes, what doesn't
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This document summarizes key points about changes and continuity in journalism. Disruptive revolutions are ongoing as assets become liabilities and new competitors emerge, but journalism retains core functions. While information routes and volume have changed dramatically, the purpose of journalism remains the systematic search for truth on issues that matter to society. Successful journalism adds value by activities like data analysis, creative search strategies, and explanation amid information abundance. Mastering change requires experimentation over rigid innovation and focusing efforts where journalism, customer data, and technology intersect. The moral and democratic purposes of journalism remain unchanged alongside skills like truth-telling and attracting attention, despite threats from new technologies and business models.
Journalism: what changes, what doesn't
- 1. JOURNALISM: WHAT CHANGES, WHAT DOESNβT GEORGE BROCK PROFESSOR OF JOURNALISM CITY UNIVERSITY LONDON NETLIFE, OSLO, DECEMBER 2015
- 2. DISRUPTIVE REVOLUTIONS β’ They donβt happen once, but repeat β’ Assets become liabilities β’ Longevity gets confused with relevance β’ New competitors (Uber, LinkedIn, Atom Bank, Red Bull) β’ Revolutions should not, need not, sweep away everything β’ The trick lies in knowing what to throw away and what to retain β’ Disruption is not new; it is most of journalismβs history β’ Late 20th century: historically very unusual β’ Writing, printing, broadcastingβ¦all disruptive (and unpopular) in their day
- 3. THE REAL CHANGES β’ Routes on which information travels change: βacrossβ as well as βdownβ β’ Interactivity easier β’ Frictionless speed and low cost β’ Above all, volume β’ The sheer quantity of information available and in circulation is the largest single change β’ This is not adaptive or operational change (as many thought at first) β’ It is transformative
- 4. JOURNALISM β’ βMSMβ (mainstream media) vs Digerati β’ This polarisation forgot the cycle of reaction to innovation β’ First overdone optimism, then overdone pessimism, then balanced synthesis β’ Decline for print is slow; for terrestrial TV, even slower β’ Journalism brands and institutions die rarely, and if they do, slowly β’ What is in trouble is business model of daily print β’ Huge consumption shift via new distribution channels (Facebook etc) β’ BUTβ¦journalism does something important
- 5. THE PLUS SIDE β’ Engine of opportunity β’ For bad and good β’ Experiment Central! β’ Slow-burn cultural change in controlled societies β’ Consumer opportunity to compare and choose amid abundance β’ Price of information falls
- 6. THE DOWNSIDE β’ A global village will have idiots and they will have global range β’ Value of information falls as supply expands β’ Managing abundance β’ No immediate βreplacementβ business model for news β’ Newsrooms have old-business-model staff costs β’ Engagement is harder: attention can be switched every few seconds
- 7. SEQUENCE OF CHANGE 1. The web 2. Smartphones 3. Tablets 4. Apps to apps + connected devices 5. Nextβ¦robot/AI journalism, ad- blockers, virtual reality
- 8. WHY ARE WE STILL CALLING THEM βPHONESβ?
- 9. THIS TRUTH DOES NOT CHANGE βIt is the imagination, ultimately, and not mathematical calculation that creates media; it is the fresh perception of how to fit a potential machine into an actual way of life that really constitutes the act of βinventionβ.β Anthony Smith, Goodbye Gutenberg, 1980
- 10. WHAT IS JOURNALISM FOR? β’ The systematic search to establish the truth of what matters to society in real time β’ 4 core tasks which newsrooms practice: β’ Verification (Storyful, First Draft) β’ Sense-making (Vox, Quartz) β’ Investigation (TBIJ, ProPublica) β’ Eye-witness (Groundtruth, GlobalVoices)
- 11. THE TEST β’Value β’ Are you adding value for which people (users or advertisers) will pay β preferably again and again? β’ β¦in a world in which anyone with a smartphone can summon a lot of information with one finger?
- 12. EXAMPLES OF VALUE (1) β’ Data βThere are still reporters out there who donβt know what all the fuss is about, who really donβt want to know about maths or spreadsheets. But for others, this new wave represents a way to save journalism. A new role for journalists as a bridge and guide between those in power who have the data (and are rubbish at explaining it) and the public who desperately want to understand the data and access it but need help. We can be that bridge.β Simon Rogers, Facts are Sacred (2011)
- 13. VALUE (2) β’ Search β’ Google-funded project is researching, piloting and evaluating new software called JUICE, to implement creative search strategies that journalists can use to strengthen investigative storytelling more efficiently than with current news content management and search tools. It builds onβ¦advanced creative search algorithms and interactive creativity support." β’ Others at work in Bergen, Trondheim, Brussels β’ Explanation (reaction to abundance) β e.g. Vox β’ New story-telling syntax: written words + audio-visual β’ Aggregation/curation β’ Editorial responsibility and care
- 14. MASTERING CHANGE β’ Unleash your inner anthropologist β’ Data is your friend β if you have qualified people to tame it β’ Experiment better than innovation β’ Think hard about the quality and discipline of experiment: β’ How are we measuring success? β’ If it fails, can we kill it? β’ What does it take to do a proper test? β’ How many tests do we need?
- 15. TARGET + STYLE/VOICE βOnline itβs easier to go narrow to go big. At ED, we target sub-sets and groups: night owls, people who wear glasses and/or beards. We donβt talk to them, we talk with them. What are the most interesting sub- sets? Takes a ton of experimentation to find βem.β Greg Dybec, Managing Editor, Elite Daily (top site for US millenials, sold to Daily Mail 2015)
- 16. LIKELY BARRIERS β’ Failure isnβt seen as useful β’ In experiment, failure is often educational and illuminating β’ Todayβs deadline and emergencies take precedence over exploration of the future β’ Journalism is seen as a mission and a vocation: heresy is punished (by other journalists) β’ Ordered to βinnovateβ or βthink outside the boxβ, people (usually) freeze. β’ The βboxβ isnβt there any more
- 18. ANOTHER WAY OF PUTTING IT βTo stop your technologists disappearing up their own agendaβ¦draw on the wall three circles which all intersect: journalism, CRM data and technology. The draw a large arrow in the small area where all three overlap. Then make the techies look at this diagram all day. Itβs surprising how easy this focus is to lose.β Matt Shearer, Head, BBC News Labs
- 19. STARING AT THE FUTURE β’ Mobile digital daily consumption has reached 51% in the US and is at over 40% worldwide (KPCB & JP Morgan). The Guardian: we expect two-thirds by end 2016 β’ The βtrifecta of terrorβ: ad-blocking, ad fraud (aka non- human traffic) and viewability (aka responsive design). (Dan Williamson, TheMediaBriefing) β’ There are 16 sensors in the average smartphone: content could be adjusted for every piece of data about what the user is doing. (Frederic Filloux, Monday Note) β’ βWeβre probably not that far from software which will predict how well or badly an item of journalism will do with a particular segment of the audience.β (Seth Rogin) β’ Oh, and video consumption is exploding
- 20. BACK TO DISRUPTION β’ Hold on to what is important whatever the era β’ You need intelligence about what is happening β’ You need agility to adapt to rapid change β’ Never lose focus on what makes your journalism work of distinctive value
- 21. JOURNALISM: WHATβS ALTERED? CHANGING β’ Information routes, velocity, quantity β’ Interactivity β’ Biz model β’ Purposes refined UNCHANGED β’ Moral/democratic purpose β’ Truth-telling β’ Attracting attention β’ Threats