Several panelists from mainstream and alternate news sources discussed the media industry's role as a gatekeeper of news and how the news industry is adjusting to the Internet, blogs and generational change in an American Forum titled "From Mainstream to MySpace: The Future of News" Wednesday.
With the growing number of blogs and alternate news sources, people have an endless number of places and people to get their news from, causing people to be their own filters for information, said Andrew Baron, the creator of Rocketboom.com. His Web site reaches about 300,000 people a day and has news videos that he described as a blog in video form.
With the prevalence of news and media suppliers on the Internet covering all niches, people both create and report news, said David Bohrman, CNN Washington Bureau chief.
"It's a very a la carte world," he said. "The first pictures and news sources come from people on the ground, not news organizations. Everyone with a cell phone is a first responder and reporter perhaps. It's not just coming through us anymore."
Stephen Marshall, co-founder of Guerilla News Network, said there is a great distrust of mainstream media, and people want more news sources and want to participate in the news-gathering culture. When newspapers and news stations lean to the political left or right or follow the government line too much, the media's reputation is damaged, he said. This can lead to people seeking news from outside the mainstream media.
Sydney Cameron, a sophomore in the School of Communication, said the future of news and how this generation uses news is an important issue.
"I thought the forum touched on a lot of interesting topics that needed to be discussed about the future of news," Cameron said. "Reporters in mainstream media need to look at how this generation will use news in the future. ... They need to draw back in the younger audience."
Jim Brady, executive editor of Washingtonpost.com and an SOC alumnus, said that while people are turning to alternate media more, it does not mean they are ignoring the mainstream media. Most people visit eight or nine news Web sites now, Brady said, when in the past there were only three to four local papers and news stations providing information.
Mainstream media is like buying clothes at the Gap, Baron said, whereas Internet news sites and blogs feature niche content, like buying clothes at a boutique.
Vivian Schiller, senior vice president of Nytimes.com, said it does not matter whether people get news from the paper or a Web site.
"Everything begins and ends with our journalism," she said. "Quality continues to work well for us. It's not about newsprint, it's about journalism."
While the world and the news media are changing, the panelists agreed that mainstream media was not ready to give up.
"Really serious reporting will always be a part of what we do," Bohrman said.
