• Cornell Daily Sun, Monday, April 24, 2006 10:33 AM

The assistant managing editor of Columbia Journalism Review's Web site told a group of Cornell students last week that these are "messy times" for journalism and that, consequently, contrarian points of view are welcome in the industry--mainly online, and particularly in the blogosphere. Bryan Keefer said that, amid today's confusing and fast-changing media landscape, no clear path exists for those who want to enter the field of journalism. He therefore advised journalism students to remain "format agnostic." Keefer: "One thing might be economical today, but that might change tomorrow." As one info source becomes as easy to access as another, knowing how to mine all the available data will become an increasingly useful skill, he said."What's the advantage of reading New York Times coverage versus an AP story? Overall, the difference isn't that much." That kind of talk can't be welcome in the corridors of The Times. But the devaluation of respected, big-name media brands will likely continue for a while, at least until audiences sort out for themselves the relative hierarchy of these brands in the new media geography.

Read the whole story at Cornell Daily Sun »