Archives: 2019

Seeing social media for what it is
“What’s the return on investment here? For each hour spent using social media for work, what, precisely, is gained? And what is lost?” Logan Molyneux
The coming splintering of conservative media
“Without Trump as its lodestar, the conservative mediasphere is likely to experience a period of fragmentation as well — competition for right-wing audiences and clicks will foster ideological sorting as different sites will seek to establish their niches and advance these competing conservatisms.” A.J. Bauer
News leadership gets an overdue upgrade
“The next outdated hindrance to our sustainable future to be thrown into the volcano is old-school, big-man, charismatic, ego-driven leadership.” Zuzanna Ziomecka
Time to get mad about information inequality (again)
“Information inequality is not new and it was not invented by Facebook, but the choices made by technologists and social media content producers alike tend to amplify unequal access to news.” Kjerstin Thorson
We learn “digital” doesn’t have to mean “short”
“Our shorter-form stories have done well digitally — but the big surprise to us over the past year has been just how strongly our longer-form journalism has resonated with digital audiences.” Raney Aronson-Rath
A more sincere definition of “community”
“Far too many media companies are pivoting to ‘community’ — creating chatty email newsletters, opening Slack channels or ‘members-only’ webinars, and offering free t-shirts or tote bags. These are more branding than community; the value proposition is weak.” Elizabeth Bramson-Boudreau
The platform tide is turning
“Instead of becoming more like technology companies or remaining beholden to platforms, publishers could help to build the internet they need.” Ben Werdmuller
Give the audience a seat at the table
“A transparent and more inclusive process, especially when combined with a more equitable distribution of power, is one of the best ways to build relationships that are based on mutual respect and, most importantly, trust.” Joe Amditis
A year of uncertainty and confidence
“We’ll all grasp that a 15 percent chance of something happening isn’t 0 percent, as any seasoned Dungeons & Dragons fan can tell you. It’s roughly the equivalent of rolling a 1 — or any other single number — on a six-sided die.” Alberto Cairo
Local reporters reflect on what’s not important
“I’ve written a lot of stories in my career that were probably of little value to the communities I cover. Most local journalists could say the same.” Elizabeth Dunbar
Tonight at 11: News, sports, and climate change
“Local TV meteorologists have the weather expertise, the trust of their local communities, and the visual explanatory skills and graphics tools to tell this story in a way that will have impact.” Frank Mungeam
The battle over objectivity intensifies
“Many of the nation’s most influential news outlets continue to apply standards of objectivity that were designed for more normal times. They turn presidential statements, even if patently false, into credulous headlines.” Matthew Pressman
The year of the climate reporter
“The journalists who take up the work of climate change reporting in 2019 will include newly trained reporters as well as many industry veterans who are tired of burying references to climate change somewhere in the footnotes of the latest weather or disaster report.” Linda Solomon Wood
Reporters go on the offensive
“‘Engagement specialist’ will really just be ‘reporter,’ and those journalists declining to engage in these new ways will find their networks limited to other reporters like them.” Sue Robinson
Journalism continues to be bad for democracy
“When we treat the sideshow as the main show, we actually disempower our readers. The world feels out of their hands; they think there’s nothing they can do to change it. Work that is good for democracy has to leave our audiences understanding what they can do.” Kate Myers
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