Journos & that nagging fear of irrelevancy

Thursday, 2nd July 2009

Don't worry, be happy? Slate's Jack Shafer thinks that, despite all the signs to the contrary, journalism could be on the verge of entering Nirvana. Well, I just hope he's right:

The barriers of entry into the journalism business have been battered down, making it easier than ever to enter the profession. That will read as small consolation to the journalists who have had their publications shot out from under them... But please notice that I'm not saying there has never been a more lucrative or prestigious time to become a journalist. The cash and status associated with the profession are fairly recent. Until the early 1970s or thereabouts, the average journalist made an average salary (if that), and his societal standing was modest.
If the downside of the battered-down barriers to entry is less pay and lower status, the potential upside is that a flood of new entrants into the field could portend a journalistic renaissance... Just because the journalism business is going to hell and it may no longer make economic sense to maintain mega-news bureaus at the center of war zones doesn't mean that journalism isn't thriving.

Andrew Sullivan agrees. Roy Greenslade, meanwhile, does his bit to launch the new era by recommending a visit to The YouTube Reporters' Centre, where established names hand out advice to tyros. I imagine Fleet Street veterans will be on hand to explain how to create the perfect expenses claim.