We should be bullish on the future of journalism

It probably comes as no surprise that I, as the dean of a journalism school, am quick to refute the claims that the industry to which I’ve devoted my life is virtually dead.

I am not, however, some dewy optimist who is ignoring the multitude of technological and financial issues that threaten the field. I recognize and fully accept these challenges and the deleterious effects they’ve had on journalism. Medill’s State of Local News Report annually charts the diminution of news outlets across the country, a rate of demise that has accelerated since we began collecting this data six years ago.

 Still, I remain bullish about the future of our industry. From my vantage point, the new technology that so many fear has, in many ways, deepened our reporting, enabling us to mine and analyze data more efficiently and accurately than ever before. Digital tools enable us to tell and illustrate stories in far more compelling and interactive ways than was imaginable a mere five years ago. Sure, many of our information streams are polluted with mis- and disinformation, but the modern platforms on which so much content is shared also allow marginalized voices and communities — once shut out by faceless gatekeepers — to broadcast in the public square, combating old tropes and stereotypes and seizing narrative control of the stories that often defined and denigrated them.

 While legacy media has certainly been diminished, our need for factual information has not. And talented, enterprising journalists, like the ones we continue to produce at Medill, will lead the charge to ensuring that the public remains informed and our democracy is preserved.