I think this is as good a time as any to reflect on the news industry and their business model. I think the word 'news' itself is becoming somewhat nebulous and

I think this is as good a time as any to reflect on the news industry and their business model. I think the word 'news' itself is becoming somewhat nebulous and this is important as it relates to the value that news organizations can extract from a paying readership. Traditionally information was power and the ability to influence large numbers people was valuable and this unique power was what made the news industry important and also made it prone to abuse and control. The free press is supposed to play a critical role in a democracy but as a business it can't perform that function and is reduced to currying favours, pushing agendas and journalists trying to be part of an inner circle so it can't play the role we think it plays or should play. Best case they are just vehicles for advertisements but worst case they are colluding to manipulate the public. Journalists don't go out randomly on the road to get news, various government departments, public organizations and businesses reach out and brief reporters. 'News' comes to them. Their power has tradionally come from having exclusive access to eyeballs which could fund having more reporters and thus 'more news' but that has become irrelevant with the internet. I don't think people are willing anymore to pay for briefings from various public departments and private businesses with some opinion thrown in. If it comes free, they may choose to consume it for amusement but as a business model or a pillar of democracy it seem the 'press' has challenges and 'news' itself is going to need defining to give it value. And as citizens we need to find new modes of accountability for democracy because the press can't deliver it.