Blog review part 4

This week on NewsBusters the news is pretty much dominated by the Mark Foley scandal. I won't go into the details of this because I'm sure we have all heard about it over and over. Beneath this scandal lies the fate of the GOP and who is responsible for putting this entire situation in the spotlight. The finger is being pointed at ABC and the Democratic party. Since elections are right around the corner, it is very convenient for the Democratic party and their lobbyists/supporters to milk it for all its worth. The situation is being exploited in order for the Democratic party to gain the higher ground in the elections. I am not at all giving any kind of support to Foley and his twisted actions, but I don't think that one man's actions should be held against an entire political party. They say that there were other Republicans that helped him cover up his devious actions; but still that doesn't mean everyone was in on it. It's sad how the power of media can influence so many people's choices; and that the media abuse this power for political gain. If you ask me, they're all crooks (politicians). Well, most of them anyway. A good number of the media professionals out there are as well. I just hope that my fellow students (and other journalism students around the world) are learning the right way to do journalism. That is the fair, honest, ethical and objective aspects that journalists are supposed to employ.
On PRESSthink, Jay Rosen talks about his Q and A session on open-source journalism. There are concerns that citizen journalists may be influenced by the mob (not in the organized crime sense, but the general, majority opinion, public mob). The concerns include ethics, bribery, majority rule (mob) influence, fair pay, plagiarism, protection from wealthy employing "goons" to make or break the news (basically bribery, blackmail or bullying), the influence it may have on elections and the influence of blogs to one side or the other. These are all valid concerns. Basically, the success and non-corruption of this kind of journalism relies on the people who participate in it. There is corruption is almost everything; but there are also those that fight to keep it to a minimum. It will take persistence and cooperation for this to work. We'll see.
The Online Journalism Blog talks about the future of newsprint, again. There are some interesting things however. One basic topic is that the money is online. Everything is turning to that medium. The future of newsprint may be on the rocks.
He also talks about the future of photojournalism. It is thought that still photography will be replaced by videography, or telegraph photography. So, basically still photos will be out and video will replace it. It says that "Digital stills photography will, when we look back on it, form a very small period of time in the history of photojournalism." I don't necessarily agree with this; and ,being a photographer myself, hope that this never becomes a complete reality.
One final note on the OJB. There is mention of a "fascinating resource for journalists" called NewsMarket. It is a place where you can download streaming video and other media assets for free. It could become a powerful tool for journalists around the world. Until next time...