Thursday, January 31, 2019

The State Of News Media Is Both Great & Terrible




It’s the best of times and the worst of times – for the news media.

It’s the worst of times because:

·         Fake news circulates like wild fire
·         Real news is undermined by false claims of “fake news” and by people like Trump who dismiss a truthful report from a traditional media outlet as “fake news.”
·         The central media influencers – the old guard like New York Times, Today Show, NPR, Time magazine see the shrinking in size of their editorial staff -- and in their influence.
·         New digital media is finding it has to cut back on editorial staff because it’s not getting the revenue to support it.

But it’s the best of times because:

·         There are more news media outlets than ever before.
·         There are more ways to communicate a message than ever before.
·         There is an increased consumption by America of information.

This past week saw some ugly news. Glamour produced its last print edition.  The Jewish Forward, after 121 years, also was ceasing its print edition.  Buzz Feed and Huff Post both announced cuts to their editorial staff.  These digital juggernauts were supposed to be the new business model for news media.  What happened?

While those layoffs were being announced, the non-profit Newseum built as a testament to honor journalism and the First Amendment, said sold its 420 million-dollar space and has to vacate in a year.  It lost tens of millions of dollars on the real estate deal --in addition to annually bleeding around fine million dollars.

Does any form of media have a pay-off ?

On the one hand, news organizations are valuable to those who own and run them.  They offer editorial voice to the owner.  These media outlets occupy real estate and some trade publicly on Wall Street.  There are billions of dollars tied up in media companies.  But few seem to run at a profit – and so many can’t afford a downward turn of the economy.

Meanwhile, to be a journalist is a dangerous occupation, especially overseas when covering war, terrorism, and corrupt governments.  While our president shits all over a free media, we must do better.

The news media is mostly made up of people who are not well paid.  Sure there are some superstar TV personalities and national radio hosts that earn lots of green, but most are underpaid, overworked.  With so much in the world to cover, how can the public be assured that a trained, educated, ethical media will properly cover it, without delay or bias?  Can the public often distinguish truth from distortion?

It is a roller coaster ride for the media, that is for sure.


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Brian Feinblum’s insightful views, provocative opinions, and interesting ideas expressed in this terrific blog are his alone and not that of his employer or anyone else. You can – and should -- follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels much more important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2019. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s Independent.  This was named one of the best book marketing blogs by Book Baby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. Also named by WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America.

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