Backpack Journalism

Jessica Malnik

I agree with Jane Stevens in “Backpack Journalism is here to stay.” She recognizes that newsrooms are in the midst of a transition, and in the future backpack/multimedia journalists will replace less technologically savvy journalists. In response to Stone, I do not think that this will weaken the quality of journalism. As backpack journalists gain more experience and new technology emerges, the quality of journalism will improve.
Newspapers and TV newscasts are great ways to tell the news on very straightforward issues, such as the weekly city commission meeting. However, I agree with Stevens that convergence journalism has the edge with more complicated issues. Convergence storytelling is more effective, because of its “context and continuity.” Being able to convey a story by combining several different mediums (such as photo, video, audio, graphics and print) will enable journalists to reach a broader audience. Converged news appeals to more people, because it has a little bit for everyone. While one person can grasp the story from video clips, another person might read the print story and graphics. In fact, I suspect that even more convergence journalists will emerge with the rise of citizen journalism. Convergence journalism promotes citizen feedback via blogs and message boards. Backpack journalism has many advantages, and is definitely here to stay.