By: Charles Bowen Site Chronicles Media Business
When you walked into your journalism school for the first time,
did you ever think that one day your chosen field would be
considered hot and trendy? Oh, come on, now -- you did not!
Not unless you could have envisioned the true impact of the
Internet on the media. And most of us couldn't.
Remember a decade ago, when the World Wide Web was just getting
started? Back then, journalism's best thinkers were wringing
their hands. The Net would kill traditional media, some said. And
in enabling every reader to become a potential publisher, the Web
would make real writers and editors an endangered species, they
said. Computers, the information world's new attractive
neighborhood nuisance, would steal what little remaining free
time our readers used to spend with us, they said.
Well, as usual with doomsday scenarios, the changes kindled by
the Internet have not been so black and white. Most dire
forecasts did not take into account, for instance, the Web's
insatiable hunger for what cyberspace insists on calling
"content." All those new Web sites need what we have been
producing for generations -- words and pictures, news and
commentary -- so suddenly new media marketplaces have emerged.
Wire services, photo businesses, weather agencies, local
newspapers, radio and television all are finding fresh
opportunities online as content providers.
In addition, readers are learning what we used to consider to be
a rather subtle lesson about journalistic gatekeepers. In the
free-flowing data of the Web, the ugliest lies and half-truths
can be tucked into the prettiest darn pages. The average editor -
- trained in objectivity -- suddenly becomes a kind of knight-
errant in the wilderness of the Web. As our readers discover the
21st century version of "buyer beware," they learn to come back
to established news agencies when they want to find information
they can trust.
And, voila, real media becomes trendy. Are you still not
convinced you're now in a Glamour Game? Check out one of the
Net's bright, up-and-coming sites that happens to be all about
what you and I do.
I Want Media is a starting point for all kinds of news and
commentary related to print, broadcasting, and Web-based
publishing. It is flush with news, statistics, and publications,
as well as links to trade groups. The site is updated daily by
Webmaster Patrick Phillips, a free-lance journalist who has held
positions with public relations agencies, a daily metro
newspaper, a weekly magazine, and a diversified media company.
"I'm a media 'fan,'" Phillips says, "and I conceived I Want Media
to be a hub for 'everything media.'"
To see Phillips' work, visit the site at http://iwantmedia.com,
where a beautifully detailed introductory screen provides pages of
hyperlinked headlines to major media stories of the day. Click a
link to go directly to the original story online. The page also
provides a number of subcategories on the screen, including those
grouped under headings such as "Media Layoffs," "Causing
Commotion," and "Quotation Marked."
Other considerations for using I Want Media in your work:
o Links along the left-hand column offer quick access to the
site's departments, including Daily News by Industry, Media
Publications, Media Organizations, Media Companies, Media Jobs,
General News, and Other Resources.
o Phillips also will bring his news directly to your electronic
doorstep, if you'd like. See the data entry box on the
introductory page under the heading "E-mail Updates." Enter your
e-mail address there to sign up to receive his latest media
headlines each weekday morning.
o Among the newer features on the site is the "Media People"
section, Phillips' collection of original, exclusive interviews
with figures in today's media. So far, emphasis here has been on
those who have made the transition from print and broadcast to
Web-based reporting and publishing.
---
Bowen writes columns, articles and books from West Virginia, and is host of the daily Internet News syndicated radio show (http://www.netnewstoday.com).
charlesbowen@compuserve.com
Copyright 2001, Editor & Publisher
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here