Wednesday 22 April 2009

Jarvis to Kerry: 'Hold hearings on the future of news not on the death of newspapers'

Jeff Jarvis has not been asked to give evidence to Senator John Kerry's committee investigating the plight of US newspapers, but he has made his own submission on his Buzz Machine blog.
Here are some his thoughts: "Newspapers are going to die. That is wrenching, of course, for employees - not just journalists but the rarely mentioned pressmen, drivers, and classified ad takers - who will lose their jobs."
"We are undergoing a millennial transformation from the industrial, mass economy to what comes next. Disruption and destruction are inevitable."
"I fear that we are bailing out the past when we should be investing in the future. We are throwing huge amounts of money to shore up business models we know are failed."
"The issue I believe you are trying to address is not the fate of newspapers at all. It is the fate of journalism."
"The internet has provided no end of opportunities to journalism, for communities to gather, share, and organize news in new ways; to reach and serve new communities and audiences; to use all available media to inform the public; to find new efficiencies - both in the means of production and distribution and also in the practice of journalism itself."
"I urge you, Senator, not to equate journalism with newspapers and its future with its past. Journalism, like the other industries I listed, is going through a transition into a new economy and one could argue that the sooner it gets there, the better."
"Rather than holding hearings on the death of newspapers, I would like to see you hold hearings on the future of news in our new knowledge economy made possible by the internet."

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