Prominent journalists discussed the nature of media at the start of the millennium during the 2000 Senior Symposium panel "Media Revolutions: A Reflection on Society" on Saturday.
Journalists Chris Wren '57, a reporter and editor for The New York Times; Matt Storin, Editor of the Boston Globe; and New York Times National Education Correspondent Jacques Steinberg '88, discussed how recent changes in technology -- especially the Internet -- and culture have affected the news industry.
Steinberg said that many people no longer require newspapers for much of their information, since primary sources could now be found online. People however, often need to consider the source of their information and its accuracy, he said.
Wren added that television does a good job of providing people with immediate information but that newspapers provide people with background information and continuing coverage, once television no longer covers a subject.
Storin also discussed how the merger of many media companies means there is the danger of the lines between news and entertainment being blurred.
Wren discussed his experiences reporting throughout the world and the problems he encountered, including clashes between what is acceptable in different cultures.
One of the greatest challenges for reporters these days, he said, is figuring out how to report news that is often very complex. He said, "Ethnic wars are almost impossible for Americans to follow, so they tune out."
According to Steinberg, technology is affecting what news is and how it is reported. He said that there is now so much information available today that it is hard for viewers to process and understand it all.
Storin talked about the decline in news consumerism over the past 20 years.
Some is due to technology he said, but it is also due to the lack of major issues in peoples' lives.
The fall of the Berlin wall was "one of the worst things to happen to journalism and one of the best things to happen to humanity," he said, adding that if there was a major war on almost everyone would check the news daily.
The panelists answered questions from the audience and gave students advice on how to get a job as a journalist.
They recommended writing for a newspaper and finishing four years as an undergraduate.
They also recommended language courses, writing courses and courses involving math and statistics.
