"You take the blue pill, the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe" * I read a Roy Greenslade blog post today about Facebook, and it made me thoughtful about our attitudes towards the ownership of news and information in the way the phrase "Google's tanks are on our... Continue Reading →
Newsrooms: Not what they were, but that’s no bad thing
Been catching up on some thinking around "what future for newspapers?" this week; this one by Michael Wolff was part-anguish and part-nostalgia and of the "on the one hand, [opinion], nevertheless, having said that [counter-opinion]..." school of writing. This one is a pretty unsentimental look at the issue from David Carr, of the NYT, which warns against the cosy sentiment that... Continue Reading →
The hook on which we are caught
These are some of my reflections on the Revival of Local Journalism conference, organised by the BBC and Society of Editors at MediaCity UK, and held on June 25. There are links to others’ posts and articles from the day throughout this piece. The Revival of Local Journalism conference (hashtag #localjournalism) on June 25 was... Continue Reading →
An unnecessary parting shot
I had a bit of a think before adding to the Allyson Bird 'Why I Left News' discussion. If you haven't read it, the link will take you to a post that obviously comes from the heart about a decision that has caused her a lot of anguish and consideration. However. Days later, this paragraph is... Continue Reading →
How we’re landscaping flat earth news with social media
I've been reading the latest Pew report on American Journalism 'The State of the News Media 2013' (overview here).It's a piece of work that, for those of us in print or broadcast. won't inspire a great deal of joy. But, among the standout points highlighted by Pew was something that's being increasingly discussed in my... Continue Reading →
Making time for added value
(Photo credit: hitthatswitch)I have an intellectual crush on Robert Picard - he's one of the academics currently publishing about journalism, and particularly mainstream print media, who really is a must-read. I mostly follow his journal papers as he's an occasional blogger but, like Clay Shirky, it's always worth reading when he posts an update. His latest post,... Continue Reading →
Shifted focus – audience, content, platforms
The Daily Post is three weeks into a new live breaking news blog - viewable in real time and fullscreen, here -(This is how it appears on the homepage,on the right hand side of the above screengrab) It runs seven days a week, ticking away between 6.30am and 10pm Monday-Friday and with a little later... Continue Reading →
Storified: The Future of News Media in Wales debate
I would have liked to attend the Future of News Media in Wales debate at Cardiff JOMEC on Monday night - it sounded fascinating.Luckily, I discovered it was underway on Twitter and with assistance of some excellent tweeters at the scene (a big thank you to everyone who helped those of us not attending follow... Continue Reading →
Future newsrooms, and lessons from Poland
Now I’m in North Wales, it’s no longer such a stretch to get to events in Liverpool like Social Media Cafe (find out more on SMC here - and if you can go to one, do. It’s brilliant) So off I went to Thursday’s open mic SMC to find out more about the mechanics of... Continue Reading →
Do newspaper closures mean news deserts? Maybe… not
Image via WikipediaI was reading Tom Stites: Layoffs and cutbacks lead to a new world of news deserts this week* and it got me thinking about how (and whether) a newspaper really is intrinsic to the fabric of a community.It is a thought-provoking piece, exploring the concept of news deserts - although Stites is discussing... Continue Reading →
Alison Gow | Building the New 