Voyages of Discovery Into New Media
At the crossroad of old journalism and new media, digital news entrepreneurs lead us on voyages of discovery into new media. From MinnPost to MediaStorm, these entities are using visual media, interactivity and social media to watchdog government abuse and the justice system, identify environmental dangers, and tell enduring stories. In doing so, they illuminate possibilities.
An ISAF soldier takes a photograph of a photographer in Kabul. Photo by ©Travis Beard/Argusphotography.Three major stories of our time—and they are with us at a time when the news media’s resources are stretched thin and audiences are dispersed in their search for credible information. How will these huge stories be told?
From Afghanistan, what images will photojournalists be able to bring us? A photographer who works there describes how visual access to the war is being curtailed.
To comprehend, then convey, the complex story of climate change is tough. Stir politics into the mix, and the road ahead gets even tougher. In pulling observations from his online reporting notebook, an environmental journalist presents the dimensions of our journalistic challenge.
A look back at how the news media did during the economic boom years with coverage of such consequential issues as deregulation and derivatives provides opportunity for worthwhile reflection. Where was the connect-the-dots reporting—the kind that joins Main Street to Wall Street and Wall Street to the world? Will reporters’ and editors’ awareness of what didn’t happen then lead them to improve what happens next?
