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All the exciting media outlets are dying – what comes next?

thewalrus.ca

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Re: All the exciting media outlets are dying – what comes next?

#31

Post by javajosh »

roer wrote: post #21
javajosh wrote: post #10

>"So what do we do for money now? I get this feeling when youtubers complain about being demonetized. Like, why were you monetized in the first place? Shouldn't this be a hobby for you, where your day job is actually helping people? Once a profession is named, there seems to be an expectation of durability. But market fundamentalism allows for no such constants. All professions are subject to the market; if there is…

I don't understand your comparison to youtubers? They get paid for their work, and complain when the platform demonetizes their videos without being transparent in their reasoning. I understand if you meant that they were complaining about their views decreasing, or their content not being compatible with the guidelines of the platform, but that is in my experience not that common. It feels to me like that part of yo…

>...a stab at the value of youtube as a job in society

Yes. Not to pick on youtube - it's just the strongest of the group of entities of which I'd include buzzfeed, vice and the rest. The world is saturated with entertainment, and it's not good for anyone. It's not good that kids grow up wanting to be youtubers not scientists. It's not good for the entertainers who chase the algorithm instead of building things or helping people.

Re: All the exciting media outlets are dying – what comes next?

#32

Post by stainablesteel »

lr4444lr wrote: post #14

One of the silver linings to AI mass generated fake news IMHO is that the professional gatekeepers of traditional media will once again be appreciated for the value they add in verification. The so-called "new media" with few exceptions is totally parasitic on them to do the real work which they would use just enough to maintain respectability over their clickbait editorializing. I don't think it's at all a positive…

establishment media does nothing but gaslight and ignore important information

i'm a little ways west of east palestine and when that train derailed it was twitter and reddit that warned me, the media did nothing

plus there are now a ton of individuals across multiple social media sites that are showing information as proper data for a more intellectually honest interpretation of various global trends, crime rates, and economic factors to anyone who looks at it. the news will literally tell you the opposite of what the data says while presenting nothing but the caked-up person who reads their teleprompter. I want better, higher quality information, not gatekeeping.

Re: All the exciting media outlets are dying – what comes next?

#34

Post by karaterobot »

candiddevmike wrote: post #12
pembrook wrote: post #6

A big factor in the decline of internet media companies that nobody talks about—every single dominant social platform (except this one) now aggressively penalizes external links in their algorithms. This should be illegal for any dominant platform IMO, external links are the lifeblood of a free and open internet. They are the only release valve from the walled gardens the inevitably result from human power-law cluste…

Social media became better at curating news than the news sites themselves, IMO, and most folks end up just reading comments or quotes in the comments. There's also too much noise on most media outlets. I think most media outlets should look at LWN as a model for sustainability: niche stories, hyper focused on what their audience is interested in.

This, is such a succinct summary of what is wrong with the news that I am upvoting it even if you didn't mean it that way.

To be clear: the curation social media does is perverse, because it bubbles the worst, most salacious and panicked stories to the top. Reading comments and quotes without having the context of the article itself is a great way to wind up angry and misinformed. If you're a news outlet, designing your news coverage to support this is unethical, and results in a cultural death spiral. Hyper-focusing on what your audience is interested in is good business, but bad journalism, and freedom of the press is enshrined in law so they can inform us rather than just give us the content we crave.

Re: All the exciting media outlets are dying – what comes next?

#36

Post by wrycoder »

roenxi wrote: post #17

The major problem I've observed is that the most important topic is politics - ie, what should we do next? The world of journalists is nearly the last place on earth people should be looking for political information. There are lies, few serious attempts at understanding the views of opponents, disinterest in the implications of the policies expounded and not even straightforward reporting of what people actually sai…

I switched most of my reading to Substack.

Re: All the exciting media outlets are dying – what comes next?

#37

Post by zpeti »

As much as many people here will hate this, it’s worth looking at what daily wire does and why it works, they have $200m+ revenue and are profitable.

In a recent interview Ben Shapiro said it was never about building a publication but building an audience who you can sell products to. Which is why they are selling films and other content like lectures too.

Many left wing orgs could do the same, but all they do is news and advertising. That clearly isn’t enough.

So I’d argue the ones that are dying are the ones that haven’t been able to adapt with a new business model.

Re: All the exciting media outlets are dying – what comes next?

#39

Post by tootie »

fauxpause_ wrote: post #2

Some irony about the request at the bottom: > Fund the journalism we need now > We need you now more than ever. In turbulent times, it is crucial that reliable media remains available to everyone. That is why we depend on your support to keep our journalism accessible and independent. From economic uncertainty to political polarization, the challenges our society is facing today are too important for half-truths. > A…

"Most news will find its way into the public consciousness if it’s important without journalism."

That seems wildly inaccurate. Rumors, misinformation and nonsense fly around faster and more freely than news. Citizen journalism has a place but they'd be nowhere without professional newsrooms with wide reach and deep resources.

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