Len’s kickstart

Len Witt’s paper 15 Steps to Re-Inventing Journalism is one of the must-read pieces for anyone thinking about the future of media and journalism.

I’ve just finished my first read of the PDF version of the piece (about 30 pages of reading, plus references). I think it’s a great starting point — both concise and broad at the same time — for figuring out the possibilities for media.

Len sets himself a Herculean task:

This article builds upon open source/open content literature and applications to
develop a framework from which academics, citizens, critics, journalists and the media
industry can collectively develop a sustainable model or models to save quality
journalism–possibly by reinventing journalism as it has traditionally been defined. This
article provides that framework, not so much as a theoretical construct, but rather as an
annotated checklist to guide those interested in reinventing journalism.

He brings it home quite nicely. If this piece doesn’t kickstart your thinking about media, nothing will.

As I wrote, I’ve only just read it for the first time, and while I’ve made a couple of margin notes, it’s going to take a few more close readings and some more thought. I’ll be interested in following Len’s excellent PJNet blog, too, as he rolls out the 15 steps in his proposal in individual posts. I’m sure the comment conversation will be lively.

Meanwhile, go read, think, learn and contribute.

TAGS: JOURNALISM, MEDIA, PUBLIC JOURNALISM, WE MEDIA