The Chosen Option
In this research paper, the chosen movie is ‘Page One: Inside the New York Times Trailer,’ which focuses on the increasingly dropping number of people reading print newspapers. Many people now rely on online news, and that means print media is becoming less popular, especially among the younger American generation. It forces newsrooms such as New York Times to re-strategize their operations to ensure that it can move from print to online media when delivering news to its target audience. The new trend has also forced the company to lay off a section of its employees in the print media department as it responds to the market forces.
The short movie clip also captures issues such as news ethics, coverage of current events, corporate ownership, media relationships, and newsroom politics, among other issues. In this short movie, it comes out clearly that people still value news. They want to know about the current events and factors that affect their lives, either directly or indirectly. However, what has changed is the mode of delivering that message. The emerging technologies have created a platform where people can have access to news via their tablets, iPads, and smartphones instead of newspapers. It forces news companies to align their operations with the changing market trends.
Timeline of Activities
According to Hoberman (2014), one of the most important stages in a research project is planning. It is important to plan for the activities to be carried out and clearly outlining the time each activity should take. In this project, the researcher considered it important to come up with a timeline of activities that will be undertaken to ensure that the paper is well researched and written by the deadline. The following table shows a timeline of activities in this project.
As shown in the above table, the activities have been identified and time allocated to ensure that within the five weeks, all activities will be carried out without having a situation where the project runs behind schedule. Kraus (2013) advises that with an effective plan, it is possible to achieve the desired outcome in a research project. Knowing when each activity should be undertaken makes it easy to work systematically towards the desired goals and objectives of the research project.
Page One: Inside the New York Times Trailer
The movie focuses on the major changes that are taking place in the field of journalism. Most of these changes were unprecedented, and it forces major newsrooms such as New York Times to adjust their operations to be in line with the changing trends. The emerging technologies have brought out disruptive changes that define the mode of delivering the message to the audience. The following are some of the key issues coming out in this movie.
Print vs. Online
Leading newsrooms such as the New York Times thrived by delivering news to their audience through print media. Readership was high, and people relied on newspapers to get detailed information about the current events. However, emerging technologies are changing the mode of delivering the message. People are becoming less interested in the print media because of the emerging options of getting the news through new gadgets such as iPad and Smartphone. As shown in the movie, the newsrooms still have to tell the story in a professional way.
However, the mode of delivery must change in line with the changing forces in society. As print media becomes less popular, newsrooms are shifting to online media. New York Times is now keen on ensuring that its audience can get the news via online platforms. It may not be the platform stakeholders in this industry consider appropriate, but it is one that has to be embraced for a firm to survive. New York Times now believes that in the near future, print media will be completely irrelevant because people will be fully relying on online media to get their news.
WikiLeaks
Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks has come up with an unprecedented strategy of delivering news that is causing concern to governments, especially the government of the United States. In their code of ethics, journalists are expected to avoid passing classified information to the public to avoid jeopardizing government operations and the country’s security.
However, WikiLeaks primarily focuses on releasing classified information. Although this practice has yet to gain legal and moral standing in the field of journalism, the global society now rely on it to get to know what their political leaders do in secrete that my later have impact on their lives. Julian Assange himself justifies the need to hold the political class to account by revealing what they do while in office, especially things that may not pass moral standards. In the movie, it is shown that newsrooms are still struggling with the need to operate ethically and legally while at the same time trying to be as transparent as possible.
Journalists’ Jobs
Journalism remains a very important profession in the modern society as people needs to be informed about the events taking place across the world. However, career in journalism is becoming less stable compared to how it was in the past. New York Times is forced to trim its workforce as it shifts from the print media to online media.
The company still prints newspapers, but in lesser quantities because of the dropping demand. It means that many people are losing their jobs in this industry. However, the trend does not mean that journalists’ jobs have become less important. In fact, journalism is at a critical stage where it has to stand out amidst a society that is awash with unverified and biased information in the social media. Journalists have a responsibility of verifying their information before disseminating it to the audience. However, that is lacking in the social media.
The years of unprecedented change makes it important for journalists to go beyond the obvious and to ensure that newsrooms remain credible and reliable source of information. Journalism in times of crisis has become more important than it ever was in the past. The raging wars in Syria, Iraq, and other Middle East countries still need to be told.
The social media may not be a reliable source of information because individuals may not risk their lives to cover such stories. However, journalists can and they often inform the world about the untold suffering of the victims of such wars. It is only the journalists who can put leaders to task in times of crisis by asking them tough questions about current events. Journalists help the people to understand how their government views a given crisis and measures put in place to address it. They ensure that leaders are held into account at all times, especially in cases where things are not running as would be expected.
Newspaper Business
Newspaper business is changing, and major newsrooms such as New York Times have to redefine their operations to ensure that they not only remain profitable but also relevant to their audience. In this business, the most important source of revenue is often through the advertisements placed by various companies (Lipstadt, 2012). However, the companies may only be willing to pay for such adverts if they are assured of a wide readership, especially among the targeted population.
However, the current trends show that the audience is shifting from print to online news. Newsrooms, as companies keen on making profits, must change with the changing market trends. They have to deliver their content in a mode that is most preferable to the audience. Trimming the workforce as a corporate strategy is one of the outcomes of this major shift from print to online (digital) media. The New York Times is currently considering a move to trim further its workforce as some have become redundant in their service delivery. The profitability of this company and its ability to survive in this increasingly competitive business environment lies on its ability to change with the changing trends by choosing the right mode of delivering messages and having the right workforce.
References
Hoberman, J. (2014). Film after film: or, what became of 21st century cinema. New York, NY: Verso.
Kraus, J. (2013). All the art that’s fit to print (and some that wasn’t): Inside the New York Times op-ed page. New York, NY: Chichester.
Lipstadt, D. (2012). Denying the holocaust: The growing assault on truth and memory. London, UK: The Free Press.