I begin with a question that may seem to be labor the point to
readers of this article but which I believe holds some of the key
issues associated with contemporary journalism.
“What to do about journalism?†is a question that has not only
conceptual dimensions – as in what do we study when we think
about journalism -- but also pedagogic ones -- how do we teach what
we think we know – and, most importantly, pragmatic ones – what
is journalism today? And how will we continue practicing it into the
coming era?
In this article I would like to think through some of the most
important challenges facing the study of contemporary journalism.
I’ll be drawing from my own work that has been somewhat focused
on the fundamental question of what journalism is for
