True editorial independence isn't the freedom to publish whatever we deem important—it's the unburdened expression of new information that improves someone's ability to navigate their life better.
This month's newsletter is out a bit early (amid a busy week in Taiwan) and it's a longer one: a conversation with Candice Fortman that gets into the heart of journalism. It's on idealism, the business side of things, and real-world utility.
“In Munich, the Czechoslovak delegation were kept in an adjoining room to await details of when and how they would surrender the Sudetenland to Hitler. On Tuesday, the Ukrainians were not even in the same country.”
In Taipei until the end of the month for RightsCon, and separate workshops and discussions on media strategy, research, and funding. I'll be sharing some takeaways and resources in my early March newsletter. If you're in Taipei and these topics are of interest, I'd be happy to connect.
The US media dev funding freeze is hitting newsrooms globally directly or indirectly; thousands of journalists won't be able to do their jobs. Check-in slots for affected colleagues in my newsletter:
Your 'creator economy' runs on oligarch whims. They harvest your data and let algorithms dictate your reach - amplified or buried at their profit-driven whim. The fediverse isn't just an alternative, it's escape from digital feudalism. No billionaires parsing your data or controlling your reach.
I’m not mourning TikTok. The creator economy needs sustainable foundations, not walled gardens. We should be exploring decentralized alternatives that put creator autonomy, community ownership first. Sustainability means building systems that can't be bought, banned, or controlled. 🌱
In writing my next newsletter came across this compelling definition of "news value" as a compound of social significance & audience relevance = “related to meaningful events that can prompt communication among users.”
Watch Duty is often called an "app" not "journalism," yet they exemplify journalism's best: identifying vital need (real-time wildfire info) & serving it through verification, clear writing & context.
The media execs we need: Equal parts digital strategist & institutional leader. Too rare? Yes. Impossible? No. Some thoughts on overcoming that dichotomy and survey results among peers:
1-question survey on leadership if you work/worked in media (totally anonymous unless you want to me quoted in the newsletter)
Describe your ideal media leader - what qualities and vision would inspire you to do your best work?
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If you want to connect, don't have a human assistant coordinate. It's almost 2025 - abusing someone’s time for your scheduling either shows you're digitally out of touch or think you're above managing your calendar. It’s not that hard and will increase the likelihood you get a meeting.
Exile media donors: stop looking at social following, engagement, page views when assessing newsrooms you fund. There is so much fraud I don't know where to begin, making such ecosystem analysis and impact reports meaningless; eg: I just bought 13k real pv in a really closed region for 37 USD.