Monthly Archives: April 2008

All the posts that could have been

Posted on April 19, 2008 by pat

Any blogger will tell you that for all the posts that make it an awful lot don’t. Many posts just get deleted, while others morph into something radically different than originally intended. I still have some partially-written posts waiting to … Continue reading →

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NY Times shows the newspaper industry is in trouble

Posted on April 17, 2008 by pat

Let this sink in for a minute: The New York Times Company, the parent of The New York Times, posted a $335,000 loss in the first quarter — one of the worst periods the company and the newspaper industry have … Continue reading →

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A blogging assignment for all journalists

Posted on April 17, 2008 by pat

I’m convinced that most journalists don’t really understand blogs or the power blogs have. So, it’s time for all journalists to start understanding blogs. Yes, it would be great if all journalists experimented with blogging and blogging software, but that … Continue reading →

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News is a social event for my generation

Posted on April 15, 2008 by pat

I don’t thumb through the newspaper. My generation discovers news in much different ways than previous ones. We don’t stumble upon random stories in a dead tree publication. We share news. No one ever says to me, “did you see … Continue reading →

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Journalists probably can’t save most newspapers

Posted on April 14, 2008 by pat

This has nothing to do with journalists or journalism. It has everything to do with poor decisions by business staff members. We can talk all we want about how journalists need to make more compelling content or care more about … Continue reading →

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Today’s Thought: Intellectual curiosity

Posted on April 12, 2008 by pat

Are most journalists intellectually curious enough? If they were they wouldn’t be asking for someone to give them training in new skills. Rather they would have already discovered new — in demand — skills, and they wouldn’t be afraid to … Continue reading →

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My advice for would-be journalists

Posted on April 10, 2008 by pat

A reader recently e-mailed me asking advice about his sister because she wants to get a graduate degree in journalism from a prestigious university. She has an English degree, hasn’t done journalism before but loves to write. He was concerned, … Continue reading →

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Are Pulitzers and awards important, relevant or worse?

Posted on April 9, 2008 by pat

The 2008 Pulitzer Prizes were awarded yesterday, which begs the question: Are Pulitzers good for journalism? Do awards cause journalists to work harder to refine their craft, or do they cause journalists to pander to award committees? Do the Pulitzers … Continue reading →

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Would I get a graduate degree in journalism? No

Posted on April 8, 2008 by pat

People have asked me this question, and it has become a hot topic in the journalism blogging world. I would personally not get a graduate degree in journalism. Journalism is not one of those fields where practicing journalists will see … Continue reading →

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Grades (education) matter for journalism (all) students

Posted on April 7, 2008 by pat

There is a school of thought that says journalism students should only worry about clips they receive from internships and not about grades. Sure that makes sense if a student is going to work for a newspaper but most students … Continue reading →

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