A Bailout Would Be a Disaster for Journalism

Future of journalism depends on paid content

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Dec 8, 2009 8:15 AM CST

(Newser) – Journalism has a bright future, despite the challenges of the digital age—but that future won't come for free, says Rupert Murdoch. Media companies that give people the news they want will be able to charge for it, he predicts in an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal, and they'll have to: "A business model that relies primarily on online advertising cannot sustain newspapers over the long term." But the worst thing that could happen to journalism would be a government bailout.

More news organizations are bound to fail during this transitionary period, Murdoch writes, but suggestions that the government should step in to save newspapers should be "chilling for anyone who cares about freedom of speech." As we saw with the auto industry rescue, he writes, "Help props up those who are producing things that customers do not want." If the government really wants to help newspapers survive, Murdoch writes, it should ditch its "arbitrary and contradictory" regulations on cross-ownership of media.

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CANNES, FRANCE - JUNE 19: Rupert Murdoch talks at a presentation hosted By Young And Rubican at the 55th annual Cannes Advertising Festival on June 19, 2008 in Cannes, France. The festival is the largest... (Getty Images)

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We will be charging consumers for the news we provide on our Internet sites. The critics say people won't pay. I believe they will, but only if we give them something of good and useful value.
- Rupert Murdoch

In the future, good journalism will depend on the ability of a news organization to attract customers by providing news and information they are willing to pay for. - Rupert Murdoch

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 16 comments

Spudsy

Dec 9, 2009 4:03 AM CST

What the hell does this lying, biased @sshat know about journalism?

tomodachi

Dec 8, 2009 8:03 AM CST

guava, guava, guava... THIS is what I posted: Murdoch knows he isn't going out of business... hence he wants to make certain that none of his competition is aided by public tax revenues... motivated by the public benefit of not having HIS news being the ONLY news. ____________________________________________________________ Out of that... How did you get THIS: "So, ALL media sources besides Murdoch's need public tax revenues?"

tran_tor

Dec 8, 2009 6:27 AM CST

while I'm dubious of Murdoch's motivations, a government owned media is a real danger to the American freedom. No amount of self imposed 'rules' would ever make this otherwise. As with Chavez, Castro, Stalin, and other totalitarian regimes, control of the media is always the first step to very bad things.

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Rupert Murdoch • online news • journalism • paid content • media ownership • News Corp • free news

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A Bailout Would Be a Disaster for Journalism