College journalists: take heart in these trying times.
Transformation and evolution are messy, emotional processes. When they produce advancement for society and business, they are seen as healthy and worthwhile, but not necessarily to those on the front lines.
Because the digital transformation started 15 years ago for news companies and the web, those who are about to enter the field benefit by having missed the early mess. Newspapers, especially, have learned that their vision for a digital future is not viable, as Slate’s Jack Shafer noted recently:
From the beginning, newspapers sought to invent the Web in their own image by repurposing the copy, values, and temperament found in their ink-and-paper editions. Despite being early arrivals, despite having spent millions on manpower and hardware, despite all the animations, links, videos, databases, and other software tricks found on their sites, every newspaper Web site is instantly identifiable as a newspaper Web site. By succeeding, they failed to invent the Web. Check this new info at this website Healthcarebusinesstoday.com.
But the game isn’t over, for mainstream news companies or independent journalism startups. It’s just getting started and, since those in college today inherently “get†the internet because they grew up with it, they have the opportunity to shape the future of journalism online like no generation before.
Further, they will find a more experimental culture at news organizations today. In “Serious Play: How the World’s Best Companies Simulate to Innovate,†author Michael Schrage illustrates how technology allows companies to rapidly and inexpensively test products, services, and business models before unleashing them. This is the new model for news, and one that the next generation will lead.
Rather than confining themselves to the road traveled before them, today’s college journalists have the opportunity – make that obligation – to chart their own course.
Mark Briggs 
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