BlogTalk:
Journalism and
Weblogs
Dan Gillmor
[email protected]
www.dangillmor.com
Journalism’s New World:
 Ubiquitous
networks
 Powerful new tools for reporting
 Anyone can publish
 Empowers not just the “former audience,”
but also the people (and institutions) we
cover
 Uncertain business models
Convergence
We
Started with “Old Media”
We added “New Media”
Then we added “We Media”
Making
anyone
the News is now possible for
Weblogs
Yes,
some are journalism
Some are not
That debate is endless
– And pointless
Weblogs
Blogs
and traditional journalism
– Complimentary, not competitors
– A world full of stringers (Doc Searls)
– Stems from long tradition

Reporters read trade journals, etc.
Blogs
alive
can break news and keep issues
December 5, 2002:
Trent Lott’s nostalgia for segregation
February 1, 2003:
Space shuttle Columbia is lost
Columbia -- 2
Columbia -- 3
Journalism has been a lecture
We
say, “This is the news.”
You buy what we sell
– (Or you don’t)
Journalism becomes a
conversation…
or maybe a seminar
 We
tell you what we have learned.
 You tell us if you think we are correct.
 Then we discuss it.
 “We can fact-check your ass” -- Ken Layne
A Foundation Principle:
My
readers know more than I do.
My Readers
Know More
Than I Do
 This
is true for all working journalists
 This is not a threat
 This is an opportunity
My Readers Knows More…
and this guy probably wishes they didn’t
Joe Nacchio
Former CEO
My Readers Knows More…
My Readers Knows More…
My Audience Learns More
Reporting & Distribution
 Digital
cameras, etc.
 Text – SMS etc.
 Write on the Web
– Radio, Moveable Type, Blogger, Etc.
 Audio
 Video
 The
“former audience” joins the party
Tools/Toys
Newer Tools
Newsreaders
RSS
Social
software
Newsreaders
RSS
Social Software
“Newsrooms” of the
Future:
Ad Hoc and More
The Self-Assembling Newsroom
Multimedia Blogging
New Media and Trust
 What
is true?
 How can reader/viewer verify?
– KayCee Nicole
– Drudge
– Rumors move at the speed of light; corrections
follow slowly
 Retreat
to quality?
New Choices for the “Covered”
 Judo
journalism:
– Washington Post
 Corporate
communications
– Ozzie blog
 Involving
your audience, too
– Alpha users
Corporate Communicating
Democracy and an Informed
Public
 Concentration
of media is a danger
– Fewer voices
– Vanilla journalism
– Wall Street’s pernicious influence
 But
“big media” do vital work
– Investigative journalism
– Covering the city council; keeping an eye on
government and other powerful players
– Ear to the community
Financial Model, “Old” Media
In
jeopardy, as advertising revenue streams
are under attack as Wall Street insists on
ever-higher profits
Industry is fearful -- and should be -- but
experimenting, at least in case of
newspapers
Broadcasters and entertainment media
want total control of digital media
Financial Model,
New Media Journalism
No
one really knows how to make
(serious) money on the Internet
journalism
Online an adjunct to old media
New media still waiting for a solid
business model
It will happen
One New Approach
Another New Approach
And Another …
Big Problem…
How Hollywood Sees
the Internet:
Intellectual Property Rights
 Digital
content: Who sets the rules?
 Rest of the world is following U.S. lead
 DMCA
– Digital Millennium Copyright Act
– Owners Exert Absolute Control
– Threats and “suggestions” – e.g. Felten
 Copyright
Extensions
– Mickey Mouse loves Scarlett O’Hara
Why Worry?
New
media entrants may be thwarted
More power to incumbents
Less useful information for citizens
Contact:
[email protected]
+1 408.920.5016
www.dangillmor.com