Death of Journalism?

I whole-heartedly agree with the sentiment of this article and want to ask why so many people seem to equate the death of the newspaper with the death of journalism? Newspapers might go away in their print form, but why does that mean that good journalism will die off as well? Can't we see that these journalists, if they are enterprising and talented enough, will figure out a way to make things work? Look no further than Hollywood Elsewhere or Thompson on Hollywood as examples of what talented and legitimate journalists can do with their skills after they have left print.

Jeffrey Wells, the writer behind Elsewhere, is a long time film critic and writer who has worked for major publications such as Entertainment Weekly among others. When he left the print world (granted this was a while ago), he launched his highly successful blog, which is truly one of the best on the internet. Not only is it a reliable source for film news (having worked in the traditional print media for a long time, Wells has a vast number of contacts in the industry), it's a vital source of criticism and opinion from a trusted, intelligent film viewer. The second half of this is something that people seem to overlook. While some regard opinion and it's influx into journalism as being a tragic turn, the blogosphere allows writers to lend their work a bit more of personal touch. Rather than answer to an editor who might curb their creativity, writers like Wells, who take their blogs and writing seriously, are able to discuss what they want, when they want and how they want to. All this leads to Hollywood Elsewhere not only being an immensely personal creation but also one that exists as a wonderful source of news.

Thompson on Hollywood is no different. Anne Thompson, who worked at Variety (THE most trusted trade paper in the entertainment industry) for a number of years as a columnist and editor, was laid off earlier this year, went over to Indiewire and now has free reign over her blog. Like Wells, Thompson's blog is one of the best on the 'net, chock full of interesting, topical news. The writing is professional and worthwhile, obviously coming from someone who takes great care in their work and product. In class, we seem to fall into a habit of decrying all bloggers as somehow being less than journalists, when many bloggers are/were journalists and take their work as seriously as anyone in the newspaper industry. While there will always be exceptions to the rule, just because someone is a blogger doesn't mean that they will turn into this. Blogs like Hilton's have single-handily set back what it means to blog. We need to remember that not all bloggers are immature and irresponsible. After all, there are immature and irresponsible newspaper journalists as well, but we give other journalists a pass. Perhaps we should do the same for some bloggers as well.