Globalisation v Localisation: Journalism

According to Eric Schlosser's book, Fast Food Nation, the ubiquitous golden arches of McDonald's are now, "more widely recognised than the Christian cross."

Ah globalisation, (or rather, Americanisation) I still remember the days when I walked for kilometres to school, barefoot in the snow with a bag of broken biscuits, the good old days.

Actually it was more like walking for one kilometre in my Nike's, can of Coke in hand and the latest toy from my Coco Pops box.

And now they tell me my information is globalised as well. Frankly, I'm surprised.

I recently began an experiment where I no longer watch/listen/read the news, an interesting choice to make when you're a journalism student I know. However, I've found people to be so engrossed with the pessimistic doom and gloom of the news that it dominates conversation and, if quizzed, I could still tell you everything that happened in the last news week.

I would bet, someone died, someone had an 'incident' while intoxicated, politician's peddled spin and Brad and Angie were rumored to be separating, again. Is this globalised information? Is this the format we really want?

With approximately four major news agencies (predominantly American) feeding our news to our journalists what do we expect? Theorists, all of which we have studied for the last three years, have been telling us the sad state of affairs for a long time. But I think we no longer need to be told the problems, but rather given the solutions.

So come on Conley, Lamble, Cunningham and Turner, what can we do?

Who will pay for journalism?

Well, the simple answer is the public.

Human beings have a thirst for knowledge, (including celebrity gossip) and if the current 'free news' environment ceases to exist, which it will, we will willingly hand over our hard earned cash to receive it.

It is perhaps naive to think that in this capitalist society we would continue to receive free, unlimited news services via the Internet, it is after all a business.

As ABC news (Internet, yes, it was free) stated last week Rupert Murdoch announced that in the future access to News Corp material on the web will come at a price.

"Quality journalism is not cheap and an industry that gives away its content is simply cannibalising its ability to produce good reporting."

Did radio kill print? Did television kill radio? Did the Internet kill TV? No, no and no.

Journalism is not dead. Just walk into a newsagent and glance at all the hundreds of magazine covers, all shiny and colourful, being sold everyday.

The face of journalism may have changed, as everything inevitably does, but it still exists and will continue to do so.

Students need to be filled with hope and belief by the institutions that teach. Being told you will fail, that there are no jobs, and that only the best will survive is not endeavouring to produce confident, capable journalists. Would you send a child into the world with those words?

Citizen Journalism: Help or Hinderance

Am I now part of paticipatory journalism? This blog comments on the state of journalism in the Australian media so does that critique equal citizen journalism?

This topic covered in tutes today stirred differing comments and opinions about the positive and negative affects of audience participation.

So is the glass half full or half empty?