Continued need for old media
Two seemingly unrelated recent events, Anna Politkovskaya’s tragic assassination and Google’s purchase of YouTube, are juxtaposed in a recent Los Angeles Times editorial. Susan D. Moeller and Moisés Naím reflect on how the weekend’s two major news stories illustrate the current debate between old and new media.
Moeller and Naím admit that new media resources such as Google, YouTube, and Flickr can be extremely valuable for citizens and journalists alike. However, they cannot be a substitute for the kind of life-threatening, democracy-checking work of investigative journalists like Politkovskaya.
The writers draw a clear parallel between traditional investigative journalism and a free society. They cite the Nobel committee’s recent decision to devise a report on the connection between peace and news coverage. Moeller and Naím assert that professional reporters contribute the “unambiguous evidence and credible "content" — documents, sources, doggedly checked and rechecked details — we desperately need for a functioning, civilized, democratic and ultimately free society.”
The question is, how can we preserve the kind of invaluable reporting that contributes to democracy while still taking advantage of advancements in new media?
Source: LA Times
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