The Future of Journalism: Blog tasks
Part 1: Clay Shirky lecture
Play the clip AND read along with the transcript below to ensure you are following the argument. You need to watch from the beginning to 29.35 (the end of Shirky's presentation). Once you've watched and read the presentation and made notes (you may want to copy and paste key quotes from the transcript which is absolutely fine), answer the questions below:
1) Why does Clay Shirky argue that 'accountability journalism' is so important and what example does he give of this?
Shirky says accountability journalism is vital because it investigates powerful institutions and exposes wrongdoing. He argues that without it, governments and corporations can act without scrutiny. He uses the example of investigative reporting that uncovered corruption and scandals to show how journalism protects the public.
2) What does Shirky say about the relationship between newspapers and advertisers? Which websites does he mention as having replaced major revenue-generators for newspapers?
Shirky explains that newspapers were funded mainly by advertisers, not readers. He says the internet broke this model because sites like Craigslist replaced classified ads and job listings. This removed a key source of income that newspapers depended on.
3) Shirky talks about the 'unbundling of content'. This means people are reading newspapers in a different way. How does he suggest audiences are consuming news stories in the digital age?
He argues that people no longer read a whole newspaper as a package. Instead, they read single articles shared through links on social media and search engines. News is consumed story by story rather than brand by brand.
4) Shirky also talks about the power of shareable media. How does he suggest the child abuse scandal with the Catholic Church may have been different if the internet had been widespread in 1992?
Shirky suggests that victims could have shared their stories online and found each other more easily. The scandal might have spread faster because information would not be controlled by a few institutions. Public pressure could have built more quickly through online sharing.
5) Why does Shirky argue against paywalls?
He argues that paywalls limit the spread of news and reduce public access. Journalism works best when it can be shared widely and influence debate. Paywalls may protect income short term but weaken journalism’s wider social impact.
6) What is a 'social good'? In what way might journalism be a 'social good'?
A social good is something that benefits society as a whole, not just individuals who pay for it. Shirky suggests journalism is a social good because it informs citizens and supports democracy. Even people who do not buy newspapers benefit from investigative reporting.
7) Shirky says newspapers are in terminal decline. How does he suggest we can replace the important role in society newspapers play? What is the short-term danger to this solution that he describes?
He suggests that new digital models and experiments will eventually replace traditional newspapers. He believes innovation will come from online communities and new organisations. The short term danger is a gap where old institutions collapse before new ones are strong enough to replace them.
8) Look at the first question and answer regarding institutional power. Give us your own opinion: how important is it that major media brands such as the New York Times or the Guardian continue to stay in business and provide news?
I think it is very important because large media organisations have the money and staff to investigate powerful institutions. Smaller platforms often cannot fund long investigations. However, they must adapt to digital change to survive and stay relevant.
Media Magazine 55 has an excellent feature on power and the media. Go to our Media Magazine archive, click on MM55 and scroll to page 38 to read the article Media, Publics, Protest and Power', a summary of Media academic Natalie Fenton’s talk to a previous Media Magazine conference. Answer the following questions:
1) What are the three overlapping fields that have an influence on the relationship between media and democracy?
Fenton identifies the political, economic and journalistic fields. The political field involves state regulation, deregulation and subsidies that shape media diversity. The economic field focuses on ownership, profit pressure and advertising, while the journalistic field concerns news values, sourcing and professional norms.
2) What is ‘churnalism’ and what issues are there currently in journalism?
Churnalism is when journalists rewrite press releases or agency copy instead of producing original reporting. It happens because there are fewer journalists expected to produce more content faster. This weakens investigative journalism and reduces depth and quality in news coverage.
3) What statistics are provided by Fenton to demonstrate the corporate dominance of a small number of conglomerates?
Fenton states that three companies control 71 percent of UK national newspaper circulation. She also explains that five groups control more than 80 percent of combined online and offline news. These figures show how concentrated media ownership is in the UK.
4) What is the 'climate of fear' that Fenton writes about in terms of politics and the media?
The climate of fear refers to politicians being afraid of negative media coverage from powerful news organisations. Prime Ministers admitted at the Leveson Inquiry that they were too close to major media owners. This fear discourages strong regulation and allows media corporations to gain political influence.
5) Fenton finishes her article by discussing pluralism, the internet and power. What is your opinion on this crucial debate - has the internet empowered audiences and encouraged democracy or is power even more concentrated in the hands of a few corporate giants?
I think the internet has empowered audiences by giving more people a voice and faster access to information. However, large tech companies now control major platforms, which concentrates power in new ways. Overall, the internet increases participation but does not fully solve the problem of concentrated media power.
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