The Last Decade: How Technology has Changed Journalism

A Ten-year retrospective: Canada and the United States in the age of digital journalism

Article by Ross Perigoe. Concordia University Canada

Summary/Comments by Jon Greig, University of North Texas Student

In his article, Ross Perigoe reviews the elements that have changed journalism in the last decade. Interestingly, he points out that what constitutes news has NOT changed. What has changed is the elements of how news is delivered to audiences.

Among these elements, Perigoe notes, are 1) the development of competing news 2) the availability of visuals from amateur journalists armed with videophones and camcorders 3) reliance on many different types of information platforms on the internet.

Among these changing elements has emerged the “backpack journalist”. Their ammunition is a camcorder, laptop computer, and a satellite phone. They are “free to travel the world, looking for stories to tell.” However, the material they create news organizations have no obligation to air.

Another element of change, obviously, is the internet. Perigoe points out how people are bombarded daily with blogs, Flickr, wikis, Facebook, podcasts, vidcasts, RSS, Twitter, iPhones, Skype, Digg, blog rolls, avatars, VoIP, YouTube, etc. Only a few of these present “pure” journalism.

Of the new on-line elements, Perigoe says the podcast is the most important, simply because it allows consumers to download and consume material whenever they want to. This points to one of the most significant developments over the last decade: “The Consumer assumes greater control of the subject matter to be consumed”

Perigoe points out how news corporations have purchased competing types of media, and experimented with developing synergies. However, though advertising sales forces have been successfully combined, news coverage has not. The reason for the lack of success is based on a false assumption that every labor-saving tool allows for greater leisure time and greater productivity from journalists. Perigoe says the false assumption led to false expectations that are a “recipe for nervous breakdowns” for journalists.

Perigoe also notes, in pointing to the Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal and Bush’s “War on Terror”, that in the last decade investigative journalism has practically disappeared. He also notes how technology has also impacted how journalists cover elections.

And finally, changing technologies have also changed the realm of journalism education. Perigoe lists a number of ways in which journalism education has been challenged:

1. Students prefer to consume their news from screens (computer screens, iPhone screens, etc.)

2. Students are not loyal to one source of format

3. Journalism departments struggle to keep up with both the technology and adaptability of students

4. Is it realistic to expect students to be competent to function as text, audio and visual producers?

5. Students “rip” music, “burn” CD’s, “sample” music, take as fact stories they hear as rumors on e-mail or blogs, but are not expected to “sample” available term papers and must have 2 corroborative sources to write stories for courses

Needless to say, the last decade has made for challenging times for the world of journalism.

Link to Perigoe Article