• Sharing Ideas with the FTC on the Future of Journalism

    Josh Stearns
    November 10, 2009

    Last week, Free Press and SaveTheNews.org joined thousands of concerned citizens to file comments with the Federal Trade Commission on policy ideas to improve the future of journalism in America. The agency is collecting public comments in advance of its two-day workshop in December on the state of the news in our digital economy.

    The high-profile workshop comes on the heels of a number of reports this year advocating for a central role for government in addressing the news and information needs of our communities.

  • FTC Seeks Public Comment by Nov. 6

    Josh Stearns
    November 3, 2009

    Tell the FTC to Save the NewsThe Federal Trade Commission is investigating the state of journalism, and they need to hear from you by Friday.

    What does the FTC have to do with journalism? FTC Chairman John Liebowitz has said, "We do two things at the FTC: competition and consumer protection. Both of those issues touch on the future of journalism.”

  • Interview with Evan Smith, CEO of The Texas Tribune

    Josh Stearns
    November 3, 2009

    There is a new voice in Texas news: The Texas Tribune went live at midnight last night. But the Texas Tribune is not just a new source for news and information; it is a new model for multi-platform nonprofit news. In fact, CEO and Editor Evan Smith sees the Tribune as a new kind of “public media.” He wants the Texas Tribune to build community, to be a central hub for ideas and innovation in Texas, and to inspire citizens to engage in the world around them. It’s a big, bold project that has built upon the successes and failures of numerous other nonprofit journalism ventures.

    I sat down with Evan Smith last week to talk about how the Texas Tribune is different from any other news site out there, and about the role journalists should play in fighting for the future of news.

  • College Media and the Future of Journalism

    Josh Stearns
    November 2, 2009

    I gave a presentation last week at the National College Media Convention in Austin, Texas. It was a great crowd that offered some challenging questions and generated a good discussion. All in all, a short one-hour conference session is a tough venue for an in-depth discussion about an issue as complex as the future of journalism.

    I’m embedding my presentation here in hopes of continuing the conversation in the comment section of this blog.

  • In Defense of Journalism Policy

    Josh Stearns
    October 30, 2009

    Today’s Washington Post op-ed by Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols recovers a past too many Americans have forgotten and sets the record straight on the government’s role in protecting journalism.

    “We seek to renew a rich if largely forgotten legacy of the American free-press tradition, one that speaks directly to today's crisis,” they write. “The First Amendment necessarily prohibits state censorship, but it does not prevent citizens from using their government to subsidize and spawn independent media.”

  • Journalism Co-Ops

    Josh Stearns
    October 26, 2009

    What happens when the institutions we depend on – the ones supposedly “too big to fail” – begin to fail us? The unsustainable drive toward ever greater profits has undermined our society’s’ core institutions: health care, banks and now, journalism.

  • Nearly 50 Online Journalism Innovators Pledge Support for Net Neutrality

    Josh Stearns
    October 21, 2009

    UPDATE: The names just keep rolling in - we are now up to nearly 50 newsrooms and journalists who have signed on to support Net Neutrality."

    We, the undersigned, ask you to stand with us in favor of “Net Neutrality.” Freedom of the press is a central tenant of our democracy and the Internet is today’s printing press. As journalists we understand that Net Neutrality is at its core about people’s access to information. The future of journalism in America depends on an open and free flowing Internet.

  • Columbia Study Reaffirms National Journalism Strategy

    Josh Stearns
    October 19, 2009

    A hopeful future for journalism is within reach, but it’ll take an ambitious societal effort to seize the moment. That is the conclusion of a new report released today by Columbia University’s School of Journalism.

    The Reconstruction of American Journalism by Leonard Downie, Jr., former executive editor of The Washington Post, and Michael Schudson, professor of journalism at Columbia, is the third major report to be released this year that advocates for a government role in securing the future of journalism.

  • Valuing Journalism

    Josh Stearns
    October 7, 2009

    When it comes to the future of journalism, I often hear us asking the wrong questions and then wondering why we can’t find any reasonable answers. For example, people ask: “Should government get involved in journalism?” The reality is that since the establishment of our democratic system of government, laws and policies have always shaped journalism and media. So we should not ask if government should be involved, but rather how government should be involved.

  • 200 Journalists and Citizens Discuss the Future of News in Denver

    Josh Stearns
    September 17, 2009

    The Colorado History Museum gift shop in Denver is already selling collector’s copies of the final edition of the Rocky Mountain News for $5 a piece. 

    But last night, more than 200 people showed up at the museum to prove that quality journalism is not yet a thing of the past. At an event organized by SaveTheNews.org and Denver’s IWantMyRocky.com, local citizens, journalists and nonprofit leaders came together to talk about the future.
     

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