Journalism Should be a Public Service

There was a time when television journalism wasn't supposed to make money. There were no flashing graphics and wooshing sound effects. All you needed was the anchor, the audience, and the news. Respect was something the reporter earned every night. These were the days when the networks offered news as a public service - a mandate from the FCC for the use of limited public airwaves.

Sure those newscasts look primitive now...the cardboard sets and the cheep music...but the legends like Edward R. Murrow and Walter Cronkite were invited into living rooms across America each night anyway. This was back when the people trusted the media...mainly because the media earned it with a genuine passion to serve the public by keeping them informed.

It was only a matter of time before the networks realized their news divisions could make money. Suddenly, newsrooms became more concerned with what stories would attract the most viewers. No longer did the importance of the story dictate what led a broadcast.

Sure there have been positive outcomes from this...more news coverage is available than ever before. Much of this coverage would not be possible without significant investments in technology...which would not be available without a profit driven industry. News is now available all of the time - on 24 hour cable news channels and online. These are the benefits of change.

But treating journalism like a business has brought a different attitude to the profession. Too many reporters these days expect trust and demand respect instead of earning them. So many times I hear student journalists wanting to go after the "big" stories", and referring to many everyday news events as lame.

This concerns me. It indicates that many up and coming reporters are no longer interested in telling the people's story and are more into the glamorous on air roles that await them. They don't care about places like Syracuse because it is a "small and boring city". The result? Local news will never be the same again. Young journalists moving from small markets to larger ones never take the time to really get to know the ins and outs of the communities they serve. There is no way you can learn a market within a 2 year contract.

Not all student journalists are like this, but enough of them are that it will be hard to reverse the already growing distrust of the mainstream media.