Module 6: Making Online News Profitable

The field of journalism is experiencing transformative change ushered in by the digital age—change that offers both promise and peril for news organizations. The Internet has been an incredibly disruptive technology, but has also yielded an incredible array of innovative new models for doing journalism. Everything we thought we knew about the way journalism is created, distributed and paid for is being challenged, if not replaced, by other technologies that shrink time, space and speed to market. While the legacy media continue to struggle with the pace of change, hopeful signs emerge daily. It’s an exciting if terrifying time to enter the business.

Learning Objectives:

Analyze the changes transforming journalism, and what they mean for the future of news;
Discuss how the economic backdrop creating the changes in journalism;
Describe the emerging models reshaping the field;
Discuss how these changes should influence the career paths of future journalists

Learning Activities:

[Textbook Reading] Chapter 5
[Research]: Find a new story topic or go into more depth on your beat.

Assignments (Due by 9 am CT on 11/10):

[Bb Quiz 6]: Chapter 5 & Knowledge Paper questions
[Blog Post 9]: Select one Chapter 5 Discussion and Activities from the options below (500 words), and comment (Four to thirty sentences) on the other activity in your peers’ posts.
- Activity Option/Activity 1: Use local media with diary and commentary like ProPublica activity.
- Activity Option/Activity 2: What commercials do you put up with, what if a hybrid paper went to advertisements only?
[Blog Post 10]: Work on your Multi-Media Pitch Plan. Please select the category of “Multimedia Pitch Plan” when publishing your blog post.
[KP Draft 2]: Write your 2nd Knowledge Paper draft. Please post it to the blog and select the category of “KP Draft 2”. You also need to submit the draft to Blackboard.
[Guest 5 Questions]: Post two questions for John Quinones related to Chapter Seven, Free Expression