By Jarel Morris and Cassandra Massey
Social media outlets such as Twitter and Facebook are the go-to-sites for breaking news at lightning speed, but is it a dependable news source? “The online streaming only drip feeds the media” said Dr. John English, professor emeritus at The University of Georgia.
“Nothing has come and turned the business upside-down like technology,” said Russ Riesinger, anchor and reporter for WSAV-TV Channel 3, as the panel discussed various social networks and their ability to spread news during the 61st annual Southern Regional Press Institute.
The institute held its panel discussion on February 16, in the John F. Kennedy Fine Arts Auditorium with this year’s theme, Media in a Digital Age: A Changing Landscape. The panelist and audience took part in discussing possible alternatives to covering and reporting news through various media outlets instead of traditional ways of journalism. A panel, consisting of a moderator and three consultants, assembled on stage and deliberated the changing dynamics in news delivery.
People with iPhones and news apps on their smartphones get news messages first, English asserted. “Reporters are under more pressure to file more often and deliver stories faster”, he said while the panel discussed the importance of uploading the web before reporting it on television.
Journalist and editors label this process “Feeding the Monster.” Constant multi-tasking is causing burnouts in reporters. English backed up statements from Riesinger, saying, “If you are trying to do three things at once, you are probably doing all three poorly.”
The SRPI was founded by Wilton C. Scott in 1952 and this year hosted about 250 delegates. The program spans over two-days hosting skill building and professional development workshops. Professionals from around the region volunteer with the institute to help educate students from Georgia and South Carolina on all levels including: elementary-, middle-and high-school; and college students on changing media landscapes.
Grace Curry, assistant director at WHCJ FM 90.3, had the idea digital media has brought the world “closer.” However, she felt as if the ethics of journalism are getting lost.
Twitter is a more effective news outlet when cameras are not allowed in. It can cover in-depth places journalist are not always welcomed, but the quality of the reporting may lack credibility and end up being unreliable. “Reporters have a moral responsibility to report ethically…but nobody is doing the fact-checking on the streets…it’s all about money and not being successful or true”, Curry stated.
When Savannah State senior Tiannakedece Elliott stood up and addressed the panel, she asked if colleges and universities were adopting new principles of journalism and correctly adapting to the new challenges of the digital age. English replied, “Schools do a good job with the basics; many teach ethics training and a lot of the updating is expensive to keep up with.”
English and the consultants talked about how the media thought technology was a phase. Kenneth Irby, senior faculty at The Poynter Institute and consultant of the panel, said “the digital impact has changed the media, but the fundamentals are still the same.”
Riesinger joked as the session was concluding, “I’m glad I don’t have too long ‘til I retire” noting the lack of audience feedback when referring to his television broadcast. Is the “End” near?
Contributing: Patrick Hendley, Rikiah Gatlin, copy editor Corey Morrison
Revised February 24, 2012