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light bulb status: ON...ePapers could save us all!!!

Greetings ladies and gents, welcome to a world where journalism is on the defensive. And loosing.

The headlines (which interestingly enough, are written by members of some type of editorial staff) continue to spell the death of newspapers.

I'm on the fence on this one (yes, I should be pulling for newspapers blindly because my livelihood depends on it) But I can see the varying opinions on the issue. Reality, however, is that whether you are arguing for or against the demise of news print as we know it, you actually get your information (vis-a-vie, your news) from somewhere physical (like a newspaper) and consume it somehow (read it).

I've always read newspapers. I grew up in one of those places that staunch free press advocates refer to when they want to brag about our strong freedom of press in the US. You know? One of those places that once (or more than once) had government all over their press. I did not breathe during the decades in which this took place in the DR, but I can only imagine what the news were without the fearless reporting of someone whose sole purpose was to inform. (Point your google search to One Rafael L. Trujillo if you want more insight on this)

I've always read newspapers. My paper of choice, el Listin Diario, had the most amazing international news section. I read the financial/business section like it was suspense fiction. (as in, I loved the stuff) I knew at a very young age what acronyms like UNESCO, IMF, OAS, UN, UNICEF, NRA, did and what they stood for. I read every, single, day.

Not only were newspapers dear to me as a young, avid reader, but also as a teenager and adult. I can't imagine life without them.

But the widespread use of mobile devices and the internet are now what's in vogue, what's hot and cool. What is now almost described as indispensable. The days of the commuters and coffee addicts inmersed in a broadsheet of print are leaving us, just like the morning newspaper in your driveway (or through your front window) making way for a more portable and granted, less plant-consuming medium.

So what is the solution? I of course hope that the fearless captains of the kind corporations that steer us newsfolk retool the current newspaper business model. After all, money has to be made somehow so the corporate raiders can make their money and pay us ants down here our due so we can in turn distribute it to utility providers, daycare facilities, the loan sharks, entertainment content pimps (cable),  the government, etc.

But what about the medium? Some have said that newspapers should go to the web only. I say, why not just retool the medium and make it more dynamic?

Enter the e-paper.

Not as catchy as the iPhone, or iPod (which are copyrighted already, darn it) but more along the lines of the futuristic USA Today on Minority Report.  I won't take any credit for putting this out there since tons of folks have already done so. In fact, these folks are already pumping them out and they are being tested in various places throughout the world.

Could ePapers save us? This blogger  thinks that is not out of the realm of possibility. I personally hope so. While I will likely find another occupation should newspapers suffer an entire collapse, the lack of a product by informed, tireless, sometimes inadequately compensated, body of journalists under an editorial structure would be disastrous.

Not to rest entirely on our laurels, but who is going to get you the skinny on what's going on outside of your window? Certainly not the Huffington Post. How about what's going on with your local government? Your local economy? Your school district?

We are.

Because it is what we do.

Here's a dirty little secret, where do you all think Bloggers get their stuff? Often (and I mean, like almost always) in their postings they find some news source (be it TV news, the AP or a local newspaper) that reported xy about z, link it to their posts and then they build their commentary around it. Newspapers are what in the social science called history we call a primary source folks.Nothing essentially wrong with bloogers doing this, but when those same bloggers (and others of their ild) tout that newspapers should go the way of the dinosaur while they gladly "borrow" our hard work to make their case "is disengenous at best and criminal at its worst" (c) Jon Stewart

So yes, some changes are in order for the prescription eyewear, laptop-toting, who got liberal arts degrees so-called "elitist" news junkies to survive and continue to provide the news that you sometimes hate to read, but berate us for if we don't have them readily available. Good luck to all of us.   

Posted by Maurel Merette at 9:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)