Does this excite you?

Look how we interact with different kinds of machines (and how slim they are) in the "Future vision montage" video, posted on Chris Snider's blog on the future of journalism.

Key concepts: VISUALIZATION (the common denominator of all these devices is that they help us visualize what we see, and think), portability, convenience, use of "empty space" (hanging things up in the air)...anything else to add? Feel free to comment!!

We, Kelley & Esther, Swear to Avoid...

I'm a little behind the power curve but it's worth mentioning last week's hilarious blog post, courtesy of the HufPost's Paul Dailing, on the circular, self-referential, jargon-laden conversation that often surrounds the current newspaper crisis.

Dailing takes a hit at people I have a lot of respect for (Jay Rosen and Clay Shirky among others) but he's certainly got a point (note to self; Esther, you too).

Pessimistic print journalists and Connecticut's solution

A new survey is out stating that online journalists are more optimistic about journalism than those in print and TV... not exactly a novel revelation. Of course they are more optimistic; relative to their size, online-only or mostly online outlets are by and large outperforming debt-burdened newspapers (take for example the success of Politico, where web revenue is fast catching up to revenue from the print edition.)

Online journalists are also more optimistic because they are on the right side of the publishing divide. As I work on this project, I've been struck by how often people blur what seems to me a clear separation between journalism itself and the publishing medium. Newspapers came to be synonymous journalism simply because the print product was at once the distribution vehicle and the financial backbone of an entire news ecosystem. Now that newspapers no longer hold a publishing medium monopoly and never will again, it's no wonder print and TV journalists are down and out.

Problem is that an online journalism world in its infancy can't be expected, at least right now, to magically replace an centuries-old print infrastructure. That'd be crazy. Nor do we want to reinvent the wheel and do away with the solid news generating operations at newspapers and television stations. So what to do (I've just restated the crux of the issue but now you know my take on it)? Enter a good idea out of Connecticut, where the Tribune Company announced plans to combine the operations of the Hartford Courant and local TV stations WTIC-TV and WTXX-TV.

Trib. Co.'s COO Randy Michaels says in news release:

"This is the future of media. Whether in print, over the air, or
online--the delivery mechanism isn't as important as the unique, rich nature of
the content provided. Bringing these media properties together will enable us to
bring more resources to our news coverage, improving and expanding what we can
offer readers, viewers and advertisers in the area."

It's PR speak but he is dead-on about the delivery mechanism. And housing all three news operations together is a solid business move that will cut costs and attract advertisers. Sadly coverage will probably suffer, but in the fight to stay solvent, it's the lesser of two evils when the alternative is closing up shop entirely. The decision also hands Connecticut's old media a competitive edge against online local news start-ups like CTNewsJunkie. I'll be interested to see if news organizations in other states follow suit.

Esther Kim the 'Futuristic' Bugler

Welcome to the Bugler, a blog dedicated to the future of journalism and media.

"Because of your strengths, you are filled with hope every time you think about the good things you can accomplish in the coming months, years, or decades. You probably capture people's attention whenever you describe in vivid detail what you imagine. Instinctively, you treasure the one-on-one conversations you have with visionary thinkers. It's very likely that you are innovative, inventive, original, and resourceful. People are apt to marvel at your ability to remain upbeat in the face of life's difficulties and unpredictability." ~an excerpt from Strengthsfinder 2.0

If the statement above describes you, you are futuristic. And welcome on board!

Blogging has given Kelley and I an excellent chance to map out the future of journalism (only with a pencil, of course).

I hope to fill you in on my discoveries of the future of television news through this specific means of blogging. I've been primarily searching for cool technological advances that inevitably affect the dimensions of broadcast journalism. Almost all professionals in the industry whom I interviewed agreed that the web is a MUST for the more efficient delivery. How about a news watch where you can watch news from any location in 3D images?

The journey has begun.

~A brief profile of myself:

My name Esther comes from the Persian word, 'setareh,' meaning star. Well, so born to be a star (at least to my parents :)), I am currently a senior student at Tufts University in Boston, MA. I'm originally from South Korea, but also grew up in Canada, hence the accidental 'eh's and' sow-rry's and 'bow-rrow's. I study international relations and communications and media. Journalism is where my passion and interest lie (baking comes close), and has given me many goals that I look forward to achieving in life.

Kudos to the Huffington Post

Congratulations to the Huffington Post on setting up an investigate journalism fund- it's welcome news especially in light of the latest depressing news about newspaper advertising revenue (also- the photo- kudos are in order and though a friend sent this my way today for an entirely different reason, it's oddly appropriate).

Although I don't have any specific details on the Investigative Fund, I already see two key advantages working in its favor. One is the caliber and prominence of the Fund's contributors. Professor Jay Rosen from NYU, who announced his role as Senior Advisor to the new venture on Twitter earlier today, is one of the foremost thought leaders on the future of journalism and his involvement will inevitably bring attention from the journalism community and beyond. The second is the name recognition of the Huffington Post. Nothing has been released on the Fund's team of journalists, but I can only imagine that such a well-known online news outlet (they were called on by Obama!) will attract respected journalists with name recognition of their own.

Moreover, with 11.3 million unique monthly users (traffic figures from Quantcast), the Post's name will lend the Fund more clout right off the bat, even if, as Professor Rosen explains on his blog PressThink, the new operation will be editorially distinct from the Huffington Post. Both elements can only aid the Fund's journalists in doing important investigative work immediately.

This isn't the first operation of its kind (ProPublica.org is similar) but it is certainly the most prominent. Given the current buzz around a non-profit model as a solution for journalism's woes, newspapers will be paying close attention. Non-profit investigative branches at newspapers wouldn't be a cure-all solution, but they could allow newspapers to continue their important role as civic watchdog, something that has been increasingly threatened.

Welcome to the Bugler

Welcome to The Bugler, a blog dedicated to the future of journalism! My partner Esther Kim and I (the pic is us at Mediabistro's TVNewser summit) have been working together since September on a senior project about journalism's future for our communications minor at Tufts University. Generally we're interested the future of content delivery, business models, and the evolution of journalism culture. Our project is two-pronged, with me looking primarily at newspapers while she focuses on television news, but we've been collaborating every step of the way. This blog is our forum to bounce ideas off each other Becker-Posner style while we work on finishing the project!

Anyone even remotely familiar with the dialogue surrounding the death of newspapers or struggling network news knows that there is an incredible overload of information. Everyone has an opinion and some new development comes to light every hour of every day. That reality means two things for us: first the process of the project has been great training for careers in today's media free-for-all. We write, something changes, we sit down, talk, edit, update, synthesize... and repeat. Second, in the scope of this project, we see ourselves as content analyzers- we're trying to take the pulse of the extremely active journalism conversation and present a comprehensive look at a subject that can be at first seem overwhelming.

You're also probably wondering, why The Bugler? No, Esther and I are not closet trumpet aficiandos. Nor are we related to the military. The bugle was traditionally used as a wake-up call and a way to announce the news. Our research has been a wake-up call for us about the state of jouralism today, and we hope this blog can have the same effect. Enjoy!

"Twitter Class" and the Future of Journalism

Note: this is a post from Kelley's personal blog, Rants of a Redhead

Ok I’ve jumped on the bandwagon (or maybe drunk the Koolaid) and started a blog. A brief intro to me: I’m a senior at Tufts University who grew up between Malaysia, California, Texas and Indonesia. I studied in Paris for a year and am now in the delightful position of figuring out my next move after graduation.

But most importantly for this blog, I am a huge journalism and social media geek doing a senior project on the future of journalism.… which brings me to the point. I was amazed yesterday when I saw the British Government's plans to include social media in elementary school curriculum; to be fair, the UK government and cutting edge rarely end up in the same sentence (I saw Tony Blair speak this year at Tufts- brilliant and funny, yes, but hip he is not).

Do you really need to teach digital natives (great research being done at Harvard Law’s Berkman Center) something they will undoubtedly absorb independently? The short answer is no, but if done right, there’s a greater opportunity here to promote media literacy and the civic importance of journalism among kids. Twitter, Facebook and the like have already transformed both how we produce news and how we consume it (my personal favorites to get news are Twitter and Google Reader). If in teaching kids Twitter, you make them feel connected to an online community, be it local or more global in scope, you can then encourage them to want to consume and produce news, if only about Fluffy, the new family rabbit. Baby steps here.

If done well, the UK could have a media-literate future generation of journalists on their hands (let’s just hope we’ve figured out a solid monetization model by then…more on that later). Also in the mix is the argument that Twitter makes you a better writer. The flip side: if all we do is teach kids the mechanics of tweeting, the students might as well teach the teacher.

Kelley's Business Model Proposal

It is undeniable that journalism will emerge from today’s crisis looking very different from today. There is no quick fix for the economic catastrophe currently striking newspapers and there will undoubtedly be many newspapers that do not survive. How we will gauge when we’ve found a sustainable solution, I’m not sure. No one in our present moment knows with complete certainty what to expect at the other end of the tunnel.

What I do believe will be of primary importance to newspapers’ survival is focusing on adding value to readers. I drew this idea from a conversation with the New Media director at my spring internship site, Boston-based public relations Cone Communications, who explained to me that, in his experience, any company that wants to enter the online space needs to create value; otherwise, their presence is a nuisance. I believe this same idea is applicable to newspapers, particularly as they move towards a digitally-dominated future. Users will vote with their feet (or mice) if a newspaper does not cater to their needs in cyberspace.

This largely explains why I believe paid content will not work; it does not add value and interferes with the interconnectivity of the web. As we saw in “The Future of Newspapers”, even if 95% of news outlets try to erect pay walls, there will be a way around them.Pay walls will also quash the highly valuable ability to link to other content. Furthermore, at its most extreme extension, erecting pay walls could potentially lead to criminalization of content sharing and remixing, which would have adverse effects on cultural creativity.

But we do need a solution. Smart upstart online-only or mostly-online publications like Voices of San Diego, Talking Points Memo and Politico can help fill some gaps in coverage, but even they rely to some degree on the reporting resources of larger mainstream publications.

Below I offer a three-pronged proposal for the future of metropolitan daily newspapers. I should note that I did not invent the measures suggested. All of these ideas are in circulation and widely discussed; I do, however, believe that they offer newspapers the most real chance to resuscitate their dying operations.

1) Focus Online, Trim Print Delivery and Create a Weekend Magazine

I drew inspiration for the first part of my plan from a suggestion made by Nieman Journalism Lab’s Martin Langeveld. First, establish your website as your primary news vehicle. Second, rather than charging a premium for print delivery, balance the balance sheet on the cost side and reduce print delivery to a few times per week like the Detroit News, which as of March 30, 2009, is printing only four days per week. If newspapers raised print delivery prices, they might retain enough subscribers to actually yield greater profits- that, however, is a gamble, one that I feel could fail. When free content is available, even an older demographic reader is only willing to pay to a certain extent.

Then, create a for-pay “weekender” print edition, distributed on Friday, that serves as a one-stop news, arts and entertainment guide. A “news magazine” that serves as an effective guide to the local blogosphere and provides valuable analysis of local news is a product that I would buy. Successful marketing would be crucial, but assuming the newspaper can convince readers to pay for the weekender, it instantly becomes more attractive to advertisers, thus augmenting advertising revenue in the process.

2) Voluntary Kachingle Model

The next initiative newspapers should pursue is widespread implementation of a Kachingle model for voluntary donations. I discussed in “The Future of Newspapers” Steve Yelvington’s argument that an effective marketing campaign persuading readers of the value of donating to news organizations, coupled with the acquisition of Kachingle by a technology giant like Google, could lead to large scale adoption. Perhaps newspapers could also track the number of Kachingle donations and present these figures to advertisers; again, readers who are willing to pay voluntarily are more attractive. This scheme wouldn’t by any means cover a newspaper’s operating budget, but it might net a nice supplementary profit.

3) Establish a non-profit entity for investigative journalism

In the spirit on the Huffington Post Investigative Fund, newspapers should seek out benefactors to collaborate with in establishing non-profit sister organizations for investigative journalism. Expensive and sometimes thankless investigative work slips through the cracks when budgets condense, and stands little chance of being replaced by individual bloggers who, despite their best intentions, very rarely have the reach or the resources to follow through on a story. Investigative work is, however, crucial if we want to keep a pulse on community and government activities. One significant downside is the inability of a non-profit to make political endorsements. That said, if the rest of the newspaper’s operations remain for-profit, this shouldn’t pose a major threat.

Thank You All!

This project could not have come to its life without the support from our friends, teachers, families, and the mercy of God. Any caffeinated beverage helped tremendously; those who produce those kinds of beverages, we thank you.

First and foremost, we would like to thank Howard Woolf for always pointing us in the right direction. Howard was the North Star of our project, and without his help and chuckles, we don’t even know where we would be right now.

Thank you to our second reader, Susan Eisenhauer, for always keeping us in line. You have been supportive and patient throughout the way, and we really appreciate it.

We also thank our friends who helped us create our visual presentations such as video, blog, and Esther’s news coffee holder. They put up with us through many sleepless nights and grumpy calls.

Very special thanks to all our friends in cyberspace. Without your input, we never would have been part of the conversation. You truly helped us improve our project.

Hugs and Kisses,

Esther and Kelley

Problem Statement

WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?

Journalism today is at a crossroads. For decades, journalism has been the domain of newspapers and television news companies, and the lack of publishing alternatives assured significant profit margins and a monopoly on advertising dollars. More importantly, this sizeable profit margin allowed for large newsroom budgets, allowing news outlets to finance the expensive news gathering process that supports quality, thorough journalism. But in the age of the internet, content is free, alternatives to newspapers abound, and television and advertising monopolies are no more. The current model is broken, and we are in need of a new direction for journalism.

Newspapers in particular are struggling to stay afloat, and the dire economic situation suggests that, as of April 2009, the closure of major newspapers is not far off. Indeed it’s already begun: the Rocky Mountain News, the Christian Science Monitor and the Seattle Post Intelligencer all shuttered or went entirely online in the first four months of 2009.

The Tribune Co. has filed for bankruptcy.The San Francisco Chronicle and the Boston Globe are also on shaky footing. The primary concern is that, in recent memory, newspapers have done journalism’s heavy lifting, and despite the ongoing readership migration to online, they continue to produce the most original content of any type of media outlet, averaging 70 original stories per day. That said, newspapers are now facing a situation where, as described by Paul Starr of the New Republic, “…resources for journalism are now disappearing from the old media faster than new media can develop them.”

Television news too, traditionally a hallmark of the American television landscape, has suffered in the past decade. It is beginning to face the same storm that the newspaper industry is currently weathering: how to remain relevant in the age of the internet. Moreover, television news, with its scheduled broadcast times, is losing the battle against changing viewer habits, as viewers who once dutifully sat down for the 6pm newscast turn increasingly to the web. Television news’ waning stature can also be attributed to the rampant sensationalism which has tarnished its credibility in the eyes of viewers. Unfortunately, there is something of a catch-22 at work: with viewers’ shorter-than-ever attention spans, television news directors pump eye-catching and flashy content onto the airwaves to keep people watching, but end up alienating the same audience they are trying to keep glued to the screen.

Thus far, reluctance to change from within the industry has made it difficult to embrace the internet instead of fighting a losing battle against it. But if television news were to maintain its status quo, it risks, like newspapers, eventually fading away into obscurity. This is not an inevitable outcome, but avoiding it will require innovation, experimentation, and a willingness to forgo the instinct towards retrenchment; a tall order at companies that are already seeing declining profit margins. Television news, however, holds a distinct advantage in the online content world; its employees are already experts in visual presentation of news, which is receiving increased resources even in shrinking newspaper newsrooms. On the more distant horizon is also the possibility of technological innovation that will enable us to receive television – probably better termed video content as the television device itself may not be a part of this future picture – more readily on mobile devices.

EXPLORING THE FUTURE OF JOURNALISM

How does this sad state of affairs influence our project? The painfully apparent conclusion is that something needs to change. In the case of newspapers, the dilemma is more pressing and urgent as America’s cornerstone of journalism veers dangerously close to flying off the economic rails. A new business model is needed, one that embraces the internet as its primary means of content delivery rather than trying in vain to stave off a digital transition which is already well under way. For television news, the demise is not as imminent, but the industry will need to become more forward-thinking.

Bear in mind that we are exploring the future of journalism; as such, the future has not been written and we cannot and do not claim that our predictions on the evolution of newspapers and television will be borne out. Instead, we offer a well-researched glimpse at the vigorous discussion surrounding the future of journalism. With the expertise we have accumulated in the course of this project, we also make educated proposals as to potential solutions for journalism’s current dilemma and present our personal beliefs on the technological and stylistic changes that may begin to occur in the newspaper and television industries.

While our project is largely collaborative, we split our focus, with Kelley choosing to specifically examine newspapers while Esther looks at television news. That said, we are engaging in an examination of the future of journalism as a whole, and feel that issues affecting one industry often touch the other. Our project is academic in nature, and is primarily a research and written project. However, given the contemporary nature of the topic, we use new media platforms which are already of growing importance in journalism, including blogs, online video and social media. In order to best report on the dialogue and trends in the journalism community, it is imperative that we become part of the conversation. Our blog and our use of social media like Twitter allows us to connect with others also interested in the future of journalism, thus providing us a conduit for feedback on our ideas. Furthermore, as no set path for newspapers and television news has yet emerged, it is only by actively entering the journalism community that we can understand and indeed help shape what might happen next.

Like the debate itself, our project is multi-dimensional, and includes a variety of sub-topics all pertinent to the future of journalism. Areas addressed include explanations for the current state of the newspaper industry, newspaper business models for the future, the technological evolution of television, and the transformation that new technology, including social media, has wrought on journalism’s traditional news cycle.

TOPIC SIGNIFICANCE

It was Thomas Jefferson who wrote in a letter to Edward Carrington in 1787: “The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” Jefferson speaks to the crucial role played by the news media in maintaining checks and balances on government. When the newspaper and television industries struggle and indeed risk disappearing altogether, we lose our political watchdogs. This is not to say that media have always carried out this role perfectly, far from it. But they have never been so at risk of becoming a lapdog, not a watchdog, of government.

This is not to say that there won’t be huge volumes of content produced even if newspapers and television news diminish. Thanks to the internet, the once-high barriers to entry into the publishing sphere have crumbled, and bloggers and small-scale news outlets, often working for free or on a donation basis, are multiplying. But it is without a doubt that the reporting muscle of these small entities pales in comparison to that of, for example, a New York Times or an NBC. It is also a question of credibility and accurary. We are generally confident that a story in The Times or on NBC has passed through various stages of editorial oversight and fact-checking; despite their best intentions, the believability of bloggers who publish without editing and often with limited access to sources must be questioned. The social significance of our project then is linked to this very real threat that a crippled news corps will lead to increased corruption and less accountability in society. The business of news, particularly on the newspaper side, is crumbling, but it is the wider social and political issues provoked by its decline that make the future of journalism an imperative question.

Our project also carries artistic significance, as we offer creative interpretations through illustrations and video of technology’s impact on news. We engage in brainstorming future technological innovations, offering sketches of possible devices for the future of television presentation. Moreover, we have used the mediums of new journalism – blogs, video, and social media among others – to both research and present our final product, such that the visual look of our project incorporates the technologies and artistic presentation that will likely become the norm in the industries we are examining.

The mediums of new journalism offer extremely exciting possibilities, but the question still remains how to monetize these new technologies. Therein lies the economic significance of our project. The internet enhances the ability to communicate and is a far more efficient medium for news delivery, but it is this increased efficiency that is pushing newspaper companies, and television news stations to a lesser extent, into an economic black hole. Particularly in the case of newspapers, not all will weather the storm. But given the need that some find a way, our project addresses the models that may allow them to effectively monetize in the internet age.

PERSONAL SIGNIFICANCE

Esther Kim:

This project is an excellent opportunity for me to truly delve into the heart of the journalism industry; what role it plays in society, who the main players are in terms of individuals and organizations, and what the industry has to offer to society, and why it has to thrive. Thinking about this project, I keep asking myself why this topic matters, and why we even bother to know about it. For me, it matters because news, more often than we know, affects people’s understanding and perspectives on matters. I certainly have grown up spending many weeks of watching television; it will not be an exaggeration that my picture of my surroundings in my mind have been shaped by it. This project would be a piece of my understanding of the world, the changing journalism industry, and its future that would affect the understanding of my children’s generation.

This creative and analytical project, involving making a video and conducting research, also helps me prepare to be the 21^st century journalist/reporter who, many believe, should be able to not only write but also shoot and edit on-the-go. I believe that it would be a priceless opportunity where I could genuinely worry about the issue without worrying about other constraints such as getting money out of it.

Kelley Vendeland:

For me, the project offers a valuable opportunity to extend my expertise on pressing societal issues. I was first exposed to these questions when I blogged in spring 2008 for the Editor’s Weblog, a blog of the World Association of Newspapers. It is only relatively recently though, with the acceleration of newspapers’ decline, that I grew more concerned and personally involved. The problems of newspapers and journalism as whole will not solve themselves. I wanted to become a part of the conversation because I believe that only through interested individuals actively tackling the issues will we find a solution.

Additionally, while I don’t know if I will pursue a journalism career, this project has provided excellent training for a position in any communications field, be it journalism or public relations. I understand intimately the current dynamics in media, making me an asset to a communications company. Furthermore, given the time sensitive, constantly changing nature of the topic, tracking the changes in the future of journalism debate forces me to continually synthesis my conclusions with the realities of the new developments. I feel that this analytical practice will prove useful down the road.

Kelley's Reflections on Senior Year

To be honest, I signed up for the Senior Colloquium in September of last year because a senior project seemed kind of cool, and I really didn’t want just another class; I was ready for a change. I had absolutely no direction when I stumbled into Professor Goldberg’s classroom, only a recently completed summer internship with NBC under my belt and a general idea that I wanted to do something journalism-related. In April, I’ve left with a passion, an expertise, a great friend and a feeling that in my own small way I’m a part of something important.

That seems like a tall order for one project. But I think I feel so enthusiastic because this project was truly the first time at Tufts that I’ve felt passionate about an academic issue. While I’ve always been moderately interested in my courses, nothing yet had grabbed me in the way that this project topic did. That said, even I have a hard time putting my finger on exactly why the future of journalism as a concept inspired me. I’ve had a long standing interest in communications, as evidenced by my extra-curricular activities and internships, both of which certainly provided me with vital background knowledge for this project. Of most assistance was an internship with the World Association of Newspapers, where I blogged about news in journalism for one of the association’s blogs, the Editor’s Weblog.

I give partial credit to Professor Sarah Sobieraj’s class, “Media and Society,” which encouraged me to think actively about the news media’s role in a wider democratic society. Professor Sobieraj also had us read Clay Shirky’s Here Comes Everybody, which compelled me to consider the monumental impact that occurs when the press is no longer the sole disseminator of information and is instead in dialogue with its audience. We also read Lawrence Lessig’s Free Culture, where I was exposed to the potentially deleterious effects that occur when extremely strict copyright law strangles content sharing.

Having taken Professor Sobieraj’s course, I was able to situate the importance of the future of journalism in a larger contextual framework. Although the newfound publishing ability of the wider public and the preservation of what Lessig terms “free culture” are distinct from the future of journalism, they all relate broadly to important questions about the nature, quality and accessibility of information in our society.

I approached this project from a very academic perspective. I am fascinated by the business, social and technological questions related to the future of journalism, but I don’t want to pursue a career as a journalist. I might change my mind, but I think I prefer being an amateur future of journalism blogger. Not that that form of contribution can’t be meaningful; bloggers are increasingly filling the gaps left by the receding mainstream press.

Additionally, because the topic is so contemporary and undetermined, I was able to engage in a way that felt meaningful. A personal highlight was Barry Rafkind of Somerville Voices’ invitation, on our blog no less, to meet with other online journalists interested in founding an experimental investigative journalism venture in Somerville. I don’t know how committed to the project I can be with graduation on the horizon, but his invitation did show me the extent to which I have developed an expertise on the topic. Barry read our blog first before contacting us so clearly we were on to something.

The project also opened up to me a tangential area of interest: social media. As someone who grew up in international schools overseas and now has friends literally dispersed across the globe, I am particularly fascinated by social media because it offers the potential to connect irregardless of geography. Social media like Twitter is transforming journalism, but it is beginning to make broader fundamental changes in the way we communicate.

As for the actual process of completing the project, it has offered me incredible insight into the creative process. Our project looks nothing like it did in September, or even in December. It hasn’t been all roses, but it certainly has been an important experience. I am just thankful that I had Esther on my side. We worked extremely well together, kept each other motivated and always served as a sounding board for each other’s ideas. I’m extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished. And when you and your partner can get on a bus to New York at 6:30am, attend a conference (TVNewser Summit) on the future of television with some top television players, get back on a bus to Boston at 8:30pm and still make it out for a celebratory drink at 12:30pm, all without a hitch or a conflict of interest, you know you’ve found a genuine team player, and more importantly, a friend. Cheers to us.

Esther Looks Back

“I became a journalist to come as close as possible to the heart of the world.”

Henry R. Luce, American Publisher and Editor, 1898-1967

What a journey it has been since the moment I decided to do a senior project in September! Eating a bowl of cereal after getting less than three hours of sleep, thinking, and discussing, and writing about the future of journalism, I realized how happy I am. I realized how happy I am to be a journalism student. I was happy to see myself live the kind of life that I always envisioned reporters live.

It was very interesting to look at the trajectory of this project; where it began, where it switched direction, and where it is now. I have certainly matured over time just like the project. The lessons I have learned from completing the senior project are priceless. One thing that I am most proud of taking away is that this project has solidified my vision to be a ‘bugler’ of our society. This project guided me to verbalize this vision in my head with conviction.

I absolutely loved the creative side of the project in which I got to design a news delivery device as well as a video. The entire designing the news coffee holder and making a video process was the most thrilling but also challenging. Since I am not a Mac user, it took me longer to play with the Final Cut Pro program. The programs that I used were Photoshop, Solidwork, Final Cut Pro, and After Effects. Before making this video, I had heard many stories about the horror of editing. After working on this project, I feel that I can definitely speak for that. I had to forego multiple nights without sleep in a row, four cans of Red Bull a day, and lots of ice cream to placate myself. As odd as it may sound, I quickly found myself enjoying the situation. I felt like I was on duty for something so important that needed to be done right away. At the end, it was very rewarding to see the final products and be able to present them to other people.

This project was not about getting a credit or a good grade (even though they are very important!). I was genuinely curious to see how the society will evolve, and where journalism will stand in the newly formed society. What will be my role as the bugler in society? How will people receive the news that I break and stories that I write?

It is heart-throbbing to think that some people out there will hopefully benefit from the work that I put into this project. I have learned so much from getting the project done about myself, the industry, and the reporter as a profession. But this project is not really just for me. It is for people out there who will be able to receive the same news as I do with the help of technology.

Last but not least, I have gained a genuine friend who feels just as passionate about the future of journalism and its impact on our society: Kelley Vendeland. Our friendship is another treasure that this project gave me. I have faith in Kelley, our friendship, and our hope that the future lies in the hands of individuals who start thinking and talking now.

From Start to Finish: Methodology

We have worked together on this project from Day 1 in September 2008, and have seen our project evolve significantly along the way. In September, we were absolutely not doing a project on The Future of Journalism. While we were always interested in the future per se, we originally wanted to create a television news show, with the help of Tufts' own student television group TUTV that would offer solutions for problems we saw with today's television news. We worried about the sensationalism dominating the airwaves and proposed to develop a 30-minute news magazine that reformatted today’s standard news cast such to once again make it compelling and informative to watch.

We ran with this idea throughout our first semester senior project colloquium, all the while reading sources on television news presentation that might give us inspiration in designing our final product. We scoured today’s newscasts in hopes that we could concretely identify something “wrong” which our program would remedy. At the suggestion of our advisor Howard Woolf, we dutifully took notes on the television coverage of the November 4th presidential election (the photo below is us at CMS’s election-viewing bash).

We returned to campus in January having completed additional research over winter break. Yet we still felt that, despite multiple ideas, we hadn’t landed on a vision we could nurture and devote ourselves to second semester. Our research suggested that internet television would continue to grow, and we began to play around with the idea of creating an internet television show in lieu of a traditional broadcast program. This complemented our desire to show “what’s next” but there was one small problem; we had neither the technical expertise nor the budget to create an internet TV show that would accurately reflect our futuristic mental picture. Yes, we could have done a YouTube-style podcast, but that would lack the level of quality that we were envisioning. I distinctly remember Howard telling us in a meeting that Steven Spielberg spent millions to develop the ultramodern technologies in his movie Minority Report. How were we going to show something futuristic with limited background in web design, limited budget and more notably, limited time?

The answer we arrived at in late January was, quite simply, we weren’t. Howard saw us continually hitting the wall and pointed out to us what we had failed to see: the general theme running through all of our ideas was the future of television. That was the spring board for our current project. We decided instead to do a research project on the future of television news, which then mushroomed into a focus on the future of journalism once we realized the intrinsic linkage between television news and other types of news outlets like newspapers.

With a concrete topic in hand, we launched anew into our research, this time by actively following the journalism community online. We also secured interviews with experts such as Ellen Hume, Research Director of the MIT Center for Future Civic Media, Dan Kennedy, an assistant professor of journalism at Northeastern University, columnist for the Guardian and author of the blog Media Nation, and Michael Goldman, senior consultant at the Government Insight Group, and John Van Scoyoc, the producer of Broadside News with Jim Braude at New England Cable News.

Another notable milestone was our trip to Mediabistro's TV Newser Summit on the Future of Television News in New York on March 10, funded through Tufts' Undergraduate Research Fund. We boarded at bus at 6:30 a.m., and traveled four hours to New York, made our way to the conference, which lasted all afternoon, and then jumped back on a bus to Boston at 8:30 p.m. Below is a shot of the conference room.

TVNewser's own photographer also snapped us bright and early at the TVNewser Summit, and we ended up on Mediabistro’s Flickr feed (see below).

However, we did more than follow the conversation; we became part of it. Esther and Kelley both created Twitter accounts in February and through them, were able to “follow” and in certain cases, exchange ideas with influencers like Paul Bradshaw, a blogger who lectures in online journalism at Birmingham University. Also crucial to entering the conversation was establishing our own blog, The Bugler, in March to discuss the future of content delivery, journalism business models, and other developments in the field.

The final dilemma we approached was how to best to structure our presentation such that it reflected our extensive knowledge and engagement with the topic. It posed a difficult challenge because our project did not have a logical final product; we were instead trying to showcase a dialogue. We ultimately decided that one presentation medium would not suit. We did not want to forgo the opportunity of having a visual presentation of content, and decided to create a video on the impact of technology on the news cycle. While both of us brainstormed the general ideas, Esther took a lead on making the actual video using Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, and After Effects. Creating a video was a huge commitment and initiative since each step of the way was very time-consuming.

As a result of our passion to play with multiple platforms, you see a range of components in different forms, all of which address a sub-topic in the broader future of journalism question.