The Newsroom of the Future: Restructuring the Journalism Community

The traditional newsroom is a prominent aspect of journalism and one that has often been stereotyped. A newsroom was previously envisioned as simple, crowded offices occupied by journalists typing away on computers and phoning sources for interviews. Writers more commonly collaborated with coworkers in order to incorporate different forms of media into their work, such as vision and sound. Journalists rarely relied on members of the public to develop story ideas for them to regurgitate nor did they work closely alongside them to enhance a story. This picture has changed dramatically, as the newsroom is no longer the hub of journalism. Many journalists now take to the streets to find stories and many writers must now either broaden their individual skillset or work more closely with citizens to ensure their story incorporates aspects of new media. This increased emphasis on media rich stories is a direct result of diffusion of innovations and convergence. The conventional newsroom, where the most advanced piece of technology was the computer, has changed drastically, as we are now starting to see more open spaces with large screens and other new forms of technology present and accessible to all journalists (Millers Younger, 2011).

The newsroom of the future. 

Not only has the workplace and the community undergone significant changes, so too has the journalist. A journalist was traditionally only employed to report news on one platform, whether that be television, radio or print; now, many journalists are expected to be multi-talented and capable of presenting news on several platforms (Kolodzy, 2006, page 10). Newsrooms have been altered to incorporate these changes, as the KPBS newsroom in San Diego, California, allows for it’s journalists to create stories for numerous platforms at the one work station, instead of having separate areas designated to particular forms of media (Millers Younger, 2011).

Flew (2008) claims that publications need to embrace participatory media and allow for citizens to take part in the reporting process, however he said that many organisations failed to embody this (p. 109). This opinion is now incredibly outdated, as a majority of publications have embraced the concept of citizen journalism and now encourage alternative ways of gathering and reporting news (Kolodzy, 2006, page vii). The way journalists interact in the community has changed significantly, as they are no longer the only ones who are able to investigate and report news, as ordinary, often uneducated citizens can now also take part in the process (Kolodzy, 2006, page 1).

As I consider my impending graduation and the realization that I will soon be working in the professional journalism community, I am aware that I will have to consider all forms of new media as ways of finding innovative story ideas and I will have to utilize all the skills I have been taught throughout my studies in order to become the multi-talented journalist now desired by a majority of news organisations. I believe that in the not-so-distant future the journalism newsroom will be transformed to incorporate all forms of media and although more journalists may start to work individually rather than with their colleagues, I believe that the workplace will become more open, and this will encourage bigger and better ideas.

I predict an increase in ‘backpack’ journalism in the future, which will mean that many journalists will work independently, yet they will be expected to consider all new media platforms. Dr Claire Wardle, a journalist for the BBC, said: “Now, every day on the hub there’s a core team out on Flickr and Twitter looking for news stories, going to where the conversation is taking place rather than waiting for it to come to them” (Hartley, 2009).  I believe that I will not frequently interact with fellow journalists once I enter the workforce; instead I will need to consider the public and their opinions, as they have become an integral part of the journalism practice.

Flew’s (2008) viewpoint is now out of date, as he discusses the rise of citizen journalism and how some organisations have started to realise it’s impact and potential. Yet the reality now is that participatory media and citizen journalism have well and truly formed and found their place in society. The textbook should be updated to reflect the fact that the journalism industry and journalists themselves have changed significantly and mass amounts of people are now actively participating in the news process. Flew needs to discuss certain events that have took place over the past few years which have showcased how much the role of journalists has changed, such as the London Riots and the Arab Spring. 

References: 

- Flew, T. (2008). New Media: an introduction. (3^rd ed.). Melbourne: Oxford Univeristy Press.

- Hartley, S. (2009). Future of Journalism Conference: The newsroom view of user content. Retrieved March 17, 2012, from http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/pda/2009/sep/09/journalists-ugc-attitudes

- Kolodzy, J. (2006). Convergence Journalism: Writing and Reporting Across the News Media. Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield.

- Millers Younger, S. (2011). Newsroom of the Future. Retrieved March 17, 2012, from http://newscenter.sdsu.edu/360/news.aspx?s=73214