Act II of News Media's Dramatic Change Underway

Has the news media reached Act 2 of the unfolding drama "Profound Change"? I'll wager it has—and that we’re well into it—as I read accounts about the changes at Gannett, the now-much analyzed Innovation Report from the New York Times, and other turns of the proverbial screw at news organizations large and small. Newsroom leaders seem to be moving past the fixation on staff reductions and delivery schedules to really thinking about their core work, the journalism their newsrooms are delivering. This, in turn, signals that a more fundamental reset of editorial mission at many organizations is underway. The reality is that most news organizations (like mine) neither can nor should be truly general interest, ‘all the news that fits’ providers. Access to so much information on so many devices obviates the need for all of us to provide the same story menu as our colleagues up the street or one town or county over. So, many of us are starting to figure out what we’re really best at, and where the holes in local coverage are, and how we can move more deliberately to fill those needs. This, it seems to me, is a healthy direction for local journalism, one that creates room for in-depth beat coverage at various outlets and the possibility for greater collaboration between media partners whose work and audiences complement each other. If we do that work well, we just might increase our audiences’ interest in and engagement with the important stories that we’re trying to tell. And that would be the kind of public service that truly fulfills journalism’s promise.