Tag: news

CC Media

So I’ve been thinking recently about journalism, and more specifically about the current state of news media. It seems to me someone could do pretty well if they did something (anything) and licensed all their work CC-BY, so any publication could use it. Whether that thing be reports for radio, tv, newspaper, magazines, whatever. If it’s good content, and free to the publications, it has a better chance of being accepted now than ever before. And depending on the strategy taken, it could prove to be an incredible way to get a foot in the door, and sidestep a whole lot of bullshit in the whole process.

And then I saw this, which is an interesting route that journalism could take, though I don’t really like it. The idea is reporters backed by philanthropists, which is fine for a while. I imagine wandering the country, making enough to keep wandering, and reporting on things. All free for any major organization to use. I’d love to see someone try it, and if the situation is still viable in a year’s time, I just might.

Three Years On

Three years ago, a massive earthquake in the Indian Ocean created a tsunami we’re all now familiar with. When I see news reports about the anniversary, I can’t help but remember it.

I had been cruising around online, and noticed a breaking story about a disaster somewhere in the Pacific which had killed 10,000 people. That caught my attention. The report didn’t have much info, so I went downstairs to see what CNN had to tell me. They did cover it, but gave me no new information, and after spending a couple minutes on it, went to a commercial break promising to return with a story about post-holiday shopping. It was at this point in my life that I gave up on mainstream media. They have a time and a place, but 99% of the time they’re filled with worthless garbage. I turned off the TV and went back to my computer, and followed the story online. The death toll slowly increased throughout the day as the impact of the tsunami was realized. I didn’t hear about it from anyone else until the next day.

10,000 non-americans isn’t enough for CNN to care (although it should be noted that their five minute blurb was more than any other news station). Maybe they’re learned their lesson since then, but that was really appalling. I told a friend about this some weeks later, and he replied “Yes, but they’re worthless people.” He was joking, but it still reflected some truth.

When the final death toll came in around 100,000, people seemed to care. I don’t know. In America, anything involving 30 or so people dying is automatically news for a few days, no matter how little information they may have. I’m not trying to call for a change, although I would like to see one, I’m just pointing out how sad it all is.