I read another piece on the death of news and thought really? That story has become a cottage industry of its own.
There will always be a place for unvarnished information, if only because people will pay for it. But with a wall of information out there, readers are trying to prioritize their information flow. To do that, they are relying on trusted names, who more than likely share their world view. It's always been that way. Go back to the turn of the century, not this past one but the one before it. Read a respectable news paper. You'd be surprised how strongly the publication's slant shows through. Fox News is only today's version of the Hearst Empire.
Yes, investigative journalism is dying. It's expensive and we no longer think there is a public need. The shame is that without investigative journalism, corporate malfeasance and government corruption will go undocumented as baseless claims fly unchallenged
From a PR perspective, that's not a bad thing. We realize we have the power to communicate directly with our audiences. Media provides third party validation, but the power of media to inform is being sapped by the new methods of delivering content: websites, blogs, Twitter, Facebook. The media may not be happy about it, but the direct link to our users makes public relations, well easier.
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2 comments:
Hi Tony- great perspective and insights on the "death of news" discussion. You make a good point regarding how PR can step up and better inform their audiences as the news industry changes. It's a more optimistic perspective on the issue and one to not loose sight of as communicators.
Thanks Kista. I think this is a good time to be in PR, as long as you know the role is changing. It's no longer media relations, but public relations.
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