'New journalists need imagination not cynicism'

At the JEEcamp conference on Friday, Stewart Kirkpatrick, who has launched Scotland's new online newspaper, the Caledonian Mercury, brilliantly summed up the dilemma facing journalism students about to graduate: "There's never been a better time to be a journalist. And there's never been a worse time to work as one."

The internet has created fantastic opportunities for journalists whilst undermining the business model that employs many of them.
But do not despair, at least that is the message of Adam Westbrook, the multimedia journalist, lecturer, blogger, writer and founder of the UK Future of News Meetup group, who claims: "The internet, this new digital age we now find ourselves in, is not a threat: it's a huge opportunity."

To help journalists make the most of the opportunities offered by the internet, Adam has produced an e-book called Next Generation Journalist which has just gone on sale.
He writes: "Welcome to the era of the Next Generation Journalist, the multi-media storyteller, entrepreneur, and technical all-rounder, who isn't threatened by the decline in value of news, or the lack of jobs, or the slashing of budgets brought about by the digital revolution."
Adam says: "The brutal truth is the thousands upon thousands of journalism students graduating this summer will need to think differently. The statistics alone betray that. According to UCAS figures, in 2009 more than 2,600 people en-rolled on journalism courses in the UK alone, an increase of 15.7% on the year before. All the while, the number of actual jobs available on graduation have decreased by as much."
The e-book contains interviews, case studies and "10 New Ways to Make Money in Journalisim in 2010." Adam adds: "As unnatural as it may be for the hardened journalist, in this new age of ideas we need imagination not cynicism."

• Next Generation Journalist costs £10 but is discounted to £6.50 until midnight this Friday (May 28).