"We will figure this out"

At an NIU freshman orientation recently, I talked to an incoming student who said, without question, his passion is sports journalism. But he's majoring in elementary education because he's afraid he'd never find a job in journalism.

He does want to work for the Northern Star, so at least there’s a chance. But the conversation got me thinking: As we read news almost every day about newspaper layoffs, we become increasingly gloomy about the state of our industry. We are not a good advertisement. And maybe we’re falling victim to 20th-century thinking. People lamented the decline of the horse and buggy, too, but transportation simply evolved into bigger and better means.

NINA and the Chicago Headline Club sponsored a panel discussion June 12 in Chicago, called, “Deadline: Will Newspapers Survive?” One of the thoughts that stuck with me came from Bill Adee, the Chicago Tribune’s assistant managing editor for innovation.

“We’re getting too hung up on newspapers,” Adee said, admitting that the newspaper industry as we have known it probably is dying. Journalism, he added, is not. “People want what journalists do more than ever.”

Now, whether people are willing to pay for what journalists do is a tougher question. The ultimate answer, I’m convinced, will be yes. Figuring out the best business models is the immediate obstacle, and one that, 50 years from now, might be remembered only as a speed bump.

It’s difficult to take that kind of an aerial view when we’re living at ground level, grinding through a tough transitional time. That’s no small problem for those of us who teach journalism. Sometimes we feel like we’re helping students pack their bags for a train that left two hours ago.
The high-school seniors featured a few posts down on this blog are going to need some convincing from those of us who practice and teach journalism. The next generation is taking cues from us about whether this still can be a great career. If we don’t first convince ourselves, we can’t evangelize.

In fact, the opportunities could be pretty exciting for bright people who aren't afraid of the uncertainty. The catch is, would-be journalists are going to have to be creative and make their own breaks. And many of those breaks won't come in traditional newspapers.

Still, there’s still plenty of room in newspapers for innovative minds. Take Kevin Wendt, an NIU grad who, at age 30, just became editor of the Huntsville (Ala.) Times. The Society for News Design asked him for predictions about the industry. His response: “Just one: We will figure this out. Journalism and newspapers are too important, and there are too many talented people still affiliated with both, for us not to create a sustainable business model that supports what we do.”

So, as the opinion leaders in our industry have begun to realize, it’s time to quit crying in our beer and start reinventing the news business to fit the 21st century. Sure it’s scary at times, but what better time for creative people to be journalists?

Here’s a short checklist as our industry searches for new business models. Sure, it’s idealistic. But that has to be our starting point.

• Get it through our heads that we are not necessarily trying to save newspapers, at least as we know them today. We are trying to help journalism evolve. Whether we’re still reading printed newspapers in 20 years is not the point.
  
• Encourage private ownership. Stockholder-driven journalism is a failed idea. We are not like other industries and we shouldn’t be treated like them. Our success or failure helps determine the course of democracy.
  
• Absent stockholder pressure, reduce profit margins and pay journalists a competitive wage. (Even those in small towns!) For too long, this industry has taken advantage of people who are in it because of passion, not because of money. Well, passion doesn’t pay off student loans. As college costs escalate and grads emerge with more and more debt, we will no longer attract the best and brightest on fast-food wages. Think of the number of suburban journalists who can’t afford to live in the community they cover.
  
• Rethink journalism education. Does it always have to require a four-year degree? Or could intensive two-year programs, paired with real-world experience, train students just as well? Carrying half the student loan debt makes a lower starting salary more palatable.
  
• Commit to professional training at many levels. Brown-bag lunches. Inexpensive, half-day workshops like the ones NINA provides. In-newsroom training from professionals and educators. Travel opportunities like Poynter and the American Press Institute. Publishers, editors, please understand: In tough economic times, slashing the training budget is a huge morale killer. Training makes staffers feel valued and rewarded by their company.
  
• Embrace a smaller footprint. Cover your town better than anyone else. Do not try to cover 40 towns. We’ve seen good papers accomplish this, and make money, but I just don’t think it’s the long-term answer. A newspaper that’s a hundred miles wide and a half-inch deep will not save journalism.
  I think of The Hinsdalean, the paper started by Jim Slonoff and Pam Lannom. It is hyper-local. It covers one ZIP code, Hinsdale’s. It has a tiny staff, it’s doing great journalism and it’s making money. Imagine that.
  
• Remember why we’re here. Invest most heavily in what’s most important: local news. Not entertainment blogs, not food pages or travel pages with information readers could get anywhere. In the most innovative ways possible, show readers what’s happening in their community and why it’s relevant.
  Whatever the technology, citizens always will need convenient access to necessary, reliable local news. If I’m crunched for time, why would I want to read five blogs and try to sift fact from opinion, when I could read one trusted news site or newspaper of record?
  
• Tell inspiring stories. We do this well on our news pages and Web sites, but we don’t do it well in our industry. For the sake of those who come behind us, we need to compile and share success stories of young journalists who have blazed their own trail.

Journalism is anything but a dead-end career. Let’s stop treating it like one. Embrace the challenges and encourage our best and brightest students in our communities to join us.

After all, how often does anyone get to re-invent their whole profession?