Journalism is struggling. People just don’t read like they used to—at least not in the same way. The rise and democratization of high-speed Internet access and new devices like iPads, smartphones and Kindles have revolutionized the way we consume information, communicate and, ultimately, the way we live our lives. I still have not-so-fond memories of waiting 30 minutes for my AOL Internet to dial up when I was a kid. While at work this summer, I almost had a heart attack when my phone struggled to load the live-stream HD video of Michael Phelps making his competitors look like fools at the Summer Olympics.
And while technology has granted us access to previously unfathomable amounts of information, it has also exacted a toll on many industries, including journalism. With the rise of devices like tablets, or simply smartphones, Americans increasingly consume their news online. The problem is, advertisements—which papers and magazines rely on to stay profitable—garner far fewer dollars on the Internet than in print. And with more and more Americans reading their news online, many publications are struggling to stay afloat.
The iconic news magazine Newsweek announced late last year that it would discontinue its print edition at the end of 2012. Amid decreased revenues from advertising and its print circulation, The New York Times has repeatedly cut its newsroom. Last year, the Times-Picayune, New Orleans’ daily newspaper, reduced the number of days it prints from five to three. Overall, the newspaper industry has experienced 23 consecutive quarters of year-to-year revenue decline, raising questions about the long-term profitability, and viability, of journalism.
The industry’s pivot to digital content may prove to be an existential threat. And yet, the pivot to digital content is the only real move newspapers have to the future. Among the college-aged cohort, readers almost unanimously prefer online content. I, too, prefer reading news online, as I find newspapers cumbersome.
In addition to pivoting to a digital platform, many papers have pursued other avenues to offset losses. The New York Times Company, for instance, has sold many of its subsidiaries to bolster quarterly profits. The Washington Post Company, too, has managed its subsidiaries to offset the newspaper’s tepid revenues. Instead of shedding subsidiaries, though, The Post has used its subsidiaries—like its ownership of the for-profit company Kaplan College, for example—to offset losses from the paper itself.
At some point, though, there’s reason to believe the music will stop; newspapers will no longer be able sell off subsidiaries or continue to take on more losses. Ultimately the presses will stop. For major national newspapers like The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, that scenario seems less likely, or at least far off. But make no mistake, these papers and others will have to decrease their newsroom staff, and not without consequences.
Sometimes sunshine is the best disinfectant. And journalism shines light on the dark. It exposes waste, fraud and abuse. It holds elected officials accountable and, when done right, it gives a voice to the voiceless. But above all, it informs us. The founding fathers thought journalism was so important to a vibrant democracy they protected a free press with equal weight to our right to exercise religion or be free from unreasonable searches.
Without journalism we would have never known that President Johnson’s administration lied not only to the American public, but also to Congress about the Vietnam War (Pentagon Papers) or that President Nixon’s reelection commission, under his direction, broke into the Democratic National Committee’s national headquarters to spy on them (Watergate). We also wouldn’t know about the conflict in Syria or the progress of the war in Afghanistan.
Opinion journalism is easy: Everyone has an opinion on everything. But actually gathering information, crunching data and asking the right questions is hard—and it’s a public good that citizens benefit from regardless of whether or not they actually read the paper.
For now, the future of journalism seems uncertain. It will surely survive. But to what extent?
Do online news sources dominate how you get your information? Do you think the expansion of information availability is damaging to the journalism industry? Would the resurgence in the popularity of print newspapers influence American politics? Tell us your thoughts, we want to hear them! Please send all feedback to opinion@dailycardinal.com, and visit our website, dailycardinal.com for more content
