Solutions undertaken by traditional journalism

Traditional forms of journalism have adapted in line with the emergence of blogs in order to retain its competitive edge (Rosen & Merrit 1994, cited in Kuhn & Neveu 2002: 204-5). Walker (cited in Jenkins 2006: 1) elaborates that old media are evolving into more transparent, efficient and interactive mediums, in order to compete. Conventional media has begun to form new businesses both on- and offline (The Economist Newspaper Limited 2006: 1). Investing in free daily papers, such as Melbourne’s MX is one example.


The increase of journalists who have turned to blogging instead of more conventional media outlets clearly shows that traditional journalism has started to integrate blogging into their agenda. This can be seen by the creation of conservative columnist Andrew Sullivan’s blog, whose blog attracts a large readership (Flew 2005: 78). Bloggers have started to take on journalistic role by controlling not only “ powers-that-be”, but also conventional journalism through their analysis on news and the manner of reportage. This is evident by the fact that mainstream media publishes “ pajama bloggers’ personal critiques and counter-perspectives” (Lovink 2006: 120). In fact, even big media companies have taken advantage of blogging. For instance, Newsvine, financed by former Disney and ESPN executives, is based on citizen journalism (Shaughnessy 2007: 1). Therefore, mainstream media has clearly dealt with competition from the practice of blogging.


Although there is a decline of interest in newspapers, media organizations have viewed the Internet as a chance to reinvent themselves, in order to challenge the consequences of the popularity of blogging (Fine, cited in Cho 2007: 1). Traditional journalists, in a bid to recapture audience’s attention, have begun to post news online (Tunstall, cited in Kuhn & Neveu 2006: 227). Editors have recognised competition from blogs and are hence attempting to adjust to 21st century readership (Pecquerie, cited in Fitzgerald 2007: 1). By using the Internet in creative and interactive measures, it has become clear that traditional journalism have begun to fight back. PBS, for example, has directed audiences to their website for more detailed information (Kawamoto 2003: 11). Another example can be seen in how Minnesota Public Radio has invited the public to participate in publishing news (youtube). This can be seen below in the youtube video.


In addition, big media organizations have begun to bend their conventional rules towards online journalism (Sandoval 2007: 1). This can be seen by how editors now perceive news as a “ conversation with readers, rather than a lecture from journalists” (Villa, cited in Harper 2007: 1). However, there is hope for traditional reporting. Fine (cited in Cho 2007: 1) states that

“ there will always be an audience for the things that old media do best: pursuing investigative journalism, keeping governments accountable and providing local stories you won’t get anywhere else. She adds that even though newspapers’ average operating margin slipped to 17 percent in 2006, and won’t be as profitable as before, that does not mean they are doomed”.

Therefore, the slow but noticeable change in traditional journalism has indicated that the practice of blogging is a challenging threat to overcome.