A sustainable media away from the noise is what society needs
date
Mar 4, 2024
slug
2024-a-sustainable-media-away-from-the-noise-is-what-society-needs
status
Published
tags
journalism
media
public debate
noise
business model
type
Post
summary
We are on an environment where everyone talks, but none listens - a curious democracy paradox.
Including the largest possible number of people in public debate was once a distant dream when kings and queens ruled by the force of their will and power. Democracy is a goal to be reached, yet its pinnacle may prove to be our downfall. Today, everyone can have a voice as loud as a major news publication, yet we see hate and friction thriving like bacteria in a cesspool. A Pew Research Center study found that about 85% of U.S. adults say the political debate has become more negative and less respectful. The greatest challenge for news media now is not to find the largest audience, but to reinforce the idea that the company is there for the truth - not for a “customized” truth. Otherwise, when everyone speaks at the same time, there is nothing but noise.
From a journalism perspective, it may be challenging to find practical business models that support professional, well-paid journalists. However, this is the only sustainable approach. The legacy model is broken and irreparable. The past era of massive subscription models is over. Today, audiences shape the subjects of publications, and brands act as mediums for individuals to express their identities in a culture that values "who I’d like to be" over "who I am". As Nelson Rodrigues, a Brazilian journalist, playwright, and writer, once stated:
Times are smarter or less smart. More sober or less noble, romantic or cynical, perverse or heroic, etc. etc. We were fated to live in one of the most mentally weak and astonishing times in history. There is a diffuse mental weakness, volatilized, atmospheric. We breathe it. It's here and in all languages. It is an international phenomenon so clear, so deep, that there is no doubt, no sophism fits. And then, this never seen thing happens: Everyone acts and reacts like idiots. It's not that they are, absolutely. Many are intelligent, wise, clairvoyant; and have a noble character, and a fine sensitivity, and a soul of superior quality. But in a world of mentally weak individuals, we have to imitate them. I don't know if you understand me. But to live, to survive, to coexist with others, one needs to go to the bottom of the backyard and bury all their intimate treasure there.
Rodrigues was a unique mix of conservatism and challenge to the status quo. His play "Vestido de Noiva" ("Wedding Dress") is a modern story that delves into the different dimensions of its protagonist. He broached subjects like incest, abuse, crime, and other taboos as early as the 1940s. Despite passing away over 40 years ago, his portrayal of current public discourse is remarkably precise. News companies are not merely collections of individuals acting foolishly, often prioritizing trivial matters over crucial policy. Rather, they are now pressured and controlled by the convictions of a reader who believes they know better. If this reader is challenged, they will seek someone else to affirm their opinion. Consequently, the news landscape has turned into a marketplace, offering validation for any view, especially those rooted in frustration, hate, fear, and other defining emotions of this era.
A journalist, to properly do its job, needs to be like a doctor. No matter how grim is the answer, the doctor cannot say what the patient wants to hear, or his condition will deteriorate. But while patients that ignore the true answer from doctors are bound to get sicker or die, readers that change their news diet if it does not confirm his or her views - which is basically the current state of affairs - only reinforce their opinions as fair ones. From the New York Times to Fox News, media became a speaker of the audience’s views, prejudices, preferences, and will. But truth is not that. Truth is this odd thing that is out of anyone’s control, and can slap you in the face seconds after than giving you a kiss. Journalism is a very difficult trade because you are bound to a car that you can’t control.
If news media keeps trying to emulate what is going on trending in social media, it will always lose. There are hundreds of thousands of other sources that will do a better job in finding niche subjects like some actor’s cheating, scapegoating migrants, or stating that the Earth is not round. The Reuters Institute also notes that trust in news has declined in half of all countries surveyed, underlining the challenge of combating misinformation. Although it’s not easy, news companies need to go into the storm abiding by its principles, doing honest reporting, saying uncomfortable truths, and when needed, challenging the audience saying what is wrong. If you decide to do otherwise not to do it because it’s hard, you are no longer a journalist, but just a Twitter user behind a brand.
Objectively, what’s the task? To make ends meet. A few things occur to me. First, create smaller companies that work together than major corporations that do everything. Major outlets have sunk costs that can’t be paid if you do not have some public subside like the BBC or if you are a brand with followers, not an audience, like the NYT. Second, bring the cost down like if it’s guerrilla warfare. A few soldiers lost in the forest can survive longer that a platoon in open battle. Third, develop ways to verify each other, using things like a concept I have already wrote about, armoured information. Fourth: focus on the niche, and eventually expand. You won’t have the grace to master all subjects and a global audience - you should be the expert in the field, like SCOTUS Blog is (or TLDR, do what you do best, and link to the rest).
We are entering an era that is similar to the Glacial Era. Everything is going to change in the next decade with climate change, polarisation, ageing dictators, broken democracies and populists rising to power in a phenomena that even smells like war. News media have to be present to stand by society even if it means losing privileges like Twitter prima-donna statuses, trendy offices in newsrooms or the ability to be heard at all times. Small and lean companies (or even individuals) are likelier to survive hostile environments, just like the small creatures that survived the last Glacial Era that made dinosaurs extinct. It’s tough, but there is no other way. In journalism, popularity used to be the validator of a company credibility. Today, it became the indicator that something is wrong. It merely means your customers are appeased.
We are entering an era that is similar to the Glacial Era. Everything is going to change in the next decade with climate change, polarization, aging dictators, broken democracies, and populists rising to power in a phenomenon that even smells like war. News media have to be present to stand by society, even if it means losing privileges like Twitter prima-donna statuses, trendy offices in newsrooms, or the ability to be heard at all times. Small and lean companies (or even individuals) are more likely to survive hostile environments, just like the small creatures that survived the last Glacial Era that made dinosaurs extinct. It's tough, but there is no other way. In journalism, popularity used to be the validator of a company's credibility. Today, it has become the indicator that something is wrong. It merely means your customers are appeased.