Scrap “news media”
OK, it’s time to abolish that meaningless term “news media.”
I’ve long advocated that we differentiate between different kinds of media, from “junk media” to “quality media” — just as we differentiate kinds of food, from “junk food” to healthy nutrition.
It’s time to get serious about this. Why? A new Pew Research Center report states that trust in the “news media” in the United States has declined to a 20-year low. The report, released Sept. 14, is Pew’s biennial media attitudes survey, and to be fair it does address a range of media outlets. Also, the survey is an American poll that may or may not be statistically significant or relevant in other countries.
I think the problem with the poll, and with “news media” reports about it, is the repeated use of the generalized term “news media” — and that is a worldwide issue.
There is a difference between professional news organizations dedicated to the pursuit of quality, evidence based journalism — and those that spew opinionated rants or trigger-happy crap. It’s time for those who care about journalism to insist on a more intelligent, nuanced description of what we do.
OK, it’s time to abolish that meaningless term “news media.”
I’ve long advocated that we differentiate between different kinds of media, from “junk media” to “quality media” — just as we differentiate kinds of food, from “junk food” to healthy nutrition.
It’s time to get serious about this. Why? A new Pew Research Center report states that trust in the “news media” in the United States has declined to a 20-year low. The report, released Sept. 14, is Pew’s biennial media attitudes survey, and to be fair it does address a range of media outlets. Also, the survey is an American poll that may or may not be statistically significant or relevant in other countries.
I think the problem with the poll, and with “news media” reports about it, is the repeated use of the generalized term “news media” — and that is a worldwide issue.
There is a difference between professional news organizations dedicated to the pursuit of quality, evidence based journalism — and those that spew opinionated rants or trigger-happy crap. It’s time for those who care about journalism to insist on a more intelligent, nuanced description of what we do.
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