A rather passionate defence of the profession from the FT's editor in which he says that it must return to its first principles recalling the words of the Economist which said that the model is broken.
The business of selling words to readers and selling readers to advertisers, which has sustained their role in society, is falling apart.”
He reminds us of the arguments for the 4th estate,journalism's role in informing the citizenry and to
prevent abuses of power, to expose immoral, unethical or illegal behaviour by agencies or individuals.and to
provide analysis, to explain a complicated event or process in a comprehensible narrative.
But of course the question is how to make the model survive and here he believes that
A far better path forward is for news organisations to focus on what makes their brand different from the rest.whilst finding a platform for charging for content
The consequences of it not surviving are spelt out at the end
Without new revenue streams, quality journalism will wither. We should be under no illusions about the price we would pay as a result. It would not be measured in terms of jobs alone, but something more enduring and valuable. Journalism forms part of the lifeblood of free societies Journalism is not perfect, nor was it ever meant to be. By its nature, it is often uncomfortable, especially for those in positions of power. But it matters - and I will defend it to the last.
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