The rise of Aggregators and the future of journalism

Prominent events in newsrooms in recent years can be considered as an official announcement of a transforming journalism in the ever-changing digital media landscape. In May 2016, Fairfax cutback 120 staffs. This, firstly, implies that there is a redundancy within journalism workforce. Secondly, this means that journalists in the digital age are required to perform multitasking in broadcasting news. Next, this year also saw an advent of various technologies supporting recording and broadcasting news such as drone journalism. Furthermore, social media has also taken over news publication platforms, leading to a shorter content and an increase in a need of visual aids. A matter of trust has also reflected the level of acceptance of audience towards journalism which eventually leads to a trend of citizen journalism or user-generated contents (Journalism Trends 2016). Last but not least, a recent leaked New York Times innovation report put emphasis on a need in digital shift. All the changes indicate that future development of journalism is digital-oriented.

In the high pressure of digital changes in journalism, the rise of News Aggregators is testimonials of applying multimedia and convergent practices in broadcasting news. News Aggregators, mostly are facilitated by visual aids, gather the most newsworthy information, organize and present it in the most succinct way to the online audience. The value of news aggregators is measured by speed and fact accuracy. The Huffington post, Buzzfeed and the Aj Jazzera‘ mission statement illustrates required elements for a successful digital platform in broadcasting news.

Why media convergence?

The success of News Aggregators can be explained by theirs ability to understand the concept of media convergence and embrace it.

“By convergence, I mean the flow of content across multiple media platforms, the cooperation between multiple media industries, and the migratory behavior of media audiences who would go almost anywhere in search of the kinds of entertainment experiences they wanted”

– Henry Jenkins, 2006

Media convergence defined media audience as decision-makers in content and platforms. There is a movement from passive audience to active audience which indicates a higher control and engagement of audience to the information they want to consume. Hence, news broadcasting must change in order to adapt to these “migratory behavior of media audiences”.

Moreover, this second implication is that modern journalism is integrated communication which utilizes multiple platforms in an attempt to deliver the most compelling messages to the audience. Each medium requires a specific message being tailored accordingly. When modern communication moves to digital platforms, it is a must for journalism to expect a change. Because “The medium is the message”( Marshall Mcluhan, 1964)

Where is the future of journalists

It is evident that News aggregators act third parties in news broadcasting which surplus big media organization in terms of online traffic by providing a convenient one-stop resource for readers. However, the role of professionally trained journalists is irreplaceable. “There is still a need for sense-making—for a professional processing and understanding of information. And there is still a major need for professional storytelling.” (The Future of Journalism: Networked Journalism, 2012) The value of an important story does not solely rely on facts and truth but also on an insight, analysis and angles of journalists. These are what define a real journalism.

In conclusion, the future of journalism and its sustainability is an ability to collaborate with multimedia practices.

”The future, which weighs the implications of smaller newsroom greater innovation, more financial pressures and the struggle to monetize the online platforms.” (The Future of Journalism: Networked Journalism, 2012)

Reference:

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