A corporate culture has superseded a journalistic one. Absentee owners and investors lack a passion for local communities. Goals and standards are set by business managers without the understanding or participation of the people who work for them. All around us, the forces of social, technological, and economic change challenge traditional modes of thinking, production, and delivery. Some of the conditions facing news organizations are, not doubt, cyclical and will ameliorate with an upturn in the economy.
Reporters are suspicious of the motives of their editors.
The editors worrry about the values of business managers. Some new organizations are in turmoil, fighting what amounts to a cultural cold war over values and resources. In the face of these disturbing trends, we search for roads that lead to a bright future for journalism. Such a future depends on courage, the centrality of journalistic values, a new level of discourse and understanding among all levels in news organizations, and the articulation of a common mission and purpose. What follows is a blueprint for leadership.