Page 218 - Convergent Journalism an Introduction Writing and Producing Across Media

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

other media than do dial-up users. Gil Thelen, publisher of the Tampa
Tribune, has noted how people’s information-seeking behaviors have
changed with these digital improvements. He believes journalists and
media organizations need to adapt to those behaviors (2004). Ruth
de Aquino, a newspaper manager in Brazil, produced a report for
the European Community–sponsored Mudia consortium that showed
the public’s consumption of news by the start of the 21st century had
changed dramatically compared with a decade earlier. (Mudia stands
for multimedia in a digital information age.) News and information
were available on a huge array of devices and formats, de Aquino said.
Many other formats had yet to be discovered. The concept of news
was changing and becoming more personalized, more service oriented,
and less institutional. The consumption of news and information has
been increasing an average of 1.5 percent a year since before the turn of
the century. American audiences in 2004 were consuming more than
10 hours of media a day. As part of their coping process, people are
tending to multitask and use multiple media at the same time.

208 Changes in How We Work, Not What We Do

What does this big picture scenario mean for journalism students
and people recently entering journalism? In some respects, little will
change: Clear writing and the provision of context and background will
remain fundamental to the journalist’s role. So prospective journalism
graduates need to be expert with words and know how to write across
all media. That has been one of the main premises of this book.
Journalists will also need to embrace the cultural shifts convergence
will create. Throughout this book, you’ve heard a variety of perspec-
tives on how to accomplish tasks that will aid in getting your message
across. One issue that has provided a common thread, however, is the
issue of working well with each other. Some industry professionals have
discussed the “super journalist” or “platypus” model of convergence,
but most have called for you to become very skilled in your niche area
while still having an appreciation for the work and niches of others.
Culture is a hard thing to overcome, because it is often something we
use to define ourselves. We categorize ourselves socially by age, gen-
der, education, political affiliation, and other similar demarcations. In
journalism, we find ourselves grouping as “newspaper” or “broadcast”
or “Web” journalists. While we spend a great deal of time pulling apart
the medium-based seams, the truth is that we are more alike than