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What to do about threats facing journalism

The business aspect of journalism is seriously under threat. The model of the traditional newspaper, radio and TV station is broken. Advertisers are going elsewhere — mostly online. The way we consume news has changed rapidly.
dawna friesen
Manitoban Dawna Friesen of Global National.

The business aspect of journalism is seriously under threat. 

The model of the traditional newspaper, radio and TV station is broken. Advertisers are going elsewhere — mostly online. 

The way we consume news has changed rapidly. 

I grew up on a farm just west of Winnipeg, and we got a grand total of three TV channels. Watching the news was a family affair. We all gathered in front of the TV to find out what happened in the world. And if you missed the news, you missed it. You’d have to wait until tomorrow to read it in the paper. 

Contrast that with my son, who is 13. Much as I would love to say he’s my biggest fan, he doesn’t really watch the news. He’s on Instagram and Snapchat, and spends more time on YouTube or Netflix than watching broadcast television. 

In one generation, how we connect to the world and how we consume news has been utterly transformed. 

Now, you can say, "Hey, that’s business. You adapt, or you die." And journalism is adapting. 

But here’s the thing about journalism. It’s more than a business. It’s a pillar of democracy. 

Journalism underpins every free society. It informs, it uncovers truth and it holds power to account. Without knowledge about what’s happening in your town, your province, your country, you can’t be an informed citizen. And if you aren’t an informed citizen, you can’t make informed decisions about the kind of community you want to live in, and the kind of political leaders you choose to represent you. 

Right now, journalism is under assault not just because the business model is broken, but because there are political forces actively working to undermine it and discredit it. 

An army of online trolls and activists question the veracity of stories they don’t like, attack individual journalists they don’t like, and ridicule institutions that for decades have been trusted sources of news. 

State-supported trolls from places like Russia and Saudi Arabia seed our news feeds with false stories and conspiracy theories, and actively work to undermine western liberal democracies. 

I never imagined an American president — the leader of the free world — would call the media the "enemy of the people." He’s said it so many times, we don’t even blink anymore. 

It’s having the insidious effect of eroding trust in all the news media. We have reached the point that people don’t know who or what to trust. 

I think we are living in a dangerous time. We’re not Americans, but we’re not immune to the rancour and the division and the political dysfunction that we’re watching unfold. 

So here’s my message to you: be an active part of the solution. 

Don’t be drawn into partisan ugliness that paints political opponents as traitors and the enemy. Support quality journalism. Think of it as a public service. 

Journalists used to be seen as the public watchdog. Don’t fall for the line that we are the enemy of the people. That’s the talk of a dictator, who wants to silence those who question him. 

Quality journalism increases public knowledge, political participation and engagement. It helps reduce corruption, expose the nefarious. Just look at the power of the MeToo movement, which was driven by strong women who came forward and journalists who told their stories. 

And here’s my most important point: don’t expect to get quality journalism for free. It’s not a giveaway. You need to pay for it. 

The big failing of the internet — which gave us access to the world — is that we expect to get it for free. Unless news organizations are owned by a billionaire like Jeff Bezos, that’s not sustainable. 

So pay for news, subscribe online. Demand quality. Consider the source of what you are reading and watching. Don’t get sucked in by clickbait. It just panders to sites that thrive on viral video. 

The vast majority of journalists are driven by the desire to inform the public, to get the facts and to bear witness to events — sometimes risking our lives to do it. 

So please, support quality journalism, because quality journalism underpins a healthy democracy. 

Dawna Friesen is the chief television anchor and executive editor of Global National out of Vancouver.

 

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