Why Can't We Be Friends?

The New York Times' December 2009 article, "Bloggers Crash Fashion's Front Row," highlights the clash between the worlds of old and new media — fashion magazines and fashion blogs, respectively. And what a conflict it is! As the headline says, bloggers are crashing the party. They are stepping on the Louboutin-clad toes of editors of the Anna Wintour ilk, who have put in decades at their respective publications to reach the elite status that guarantees them front row seats at Chanel.

But it is in part this elitist quality of fashion magazines that provides the fuel that is rocketing fashion bloggers to the top of the industry's consciousness. As the Times article says, it is accessibility that the new generation of fashion devotees demand. Fashion: Democratized, is what they want. So, like any group of elitists accustomed to a cozy spot at the top (or catwalk-side) some editors feel threatened.

It is a natural reaction, but I wonder — is it necessary? Instead of resisting the blogging revolution and framing it as Us versus Them, why aren't the top dogs at Vogue, W and Bazaar taking advantage of the up-to-the minute content that bloggers provide, especially since it is content that the magazine staffs cannot create themselves? These kids are doing it anyway... It would be like what ProPublica provides for the Times or CBS. Just a little more fashion forward. 

Because if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

News21

I have heard it over and over again in my three years as a journalism undergrad, from professors, advisers, alumni — "You've gotta be able to do it all."

Which is why I seethe with jealousy over the work that students like myself are turning out through News21 sites based on their campuses. Do not get me wrong; I am determined to graduate in May with the skills and knowledge to create works of multimedia journalism that are just as fantastic as these, and I am confident that the resources in Park will prepare me. But the News21 project is surely leading the way when it comes to setting the standards for new media's future, and for granting tomorrow's newsmakers the resources with which to create it.

News21 forecasts what news will look like in five, ten, twenty years. Each and every project is multidimensional, relying on different media to tell different chapters of a story. The result is a series of complete packages that include interactive maps and other graphics, audio slideshows, videos, as well as written stories. It is clear that the particular use of each medium is deliberate; someone decided that it would be the best way to make the story come alive.

But News21 does not only look to the future. It takes journalism back to its core principles, through telling the stories of people often forgotten or overlooked by society — inmates, veterans, the elderly. It literally gives a microphone to people whose voices are rarely heard.

I am anxious to see what sort of innovation the News21 initiative brings in the next few years. Through distribution of student work to some of the largest media outlets in the nation, it fills a necessary niche, by providing rich, in-depth journalism that for-profit outlets cannot afford to create themselves. It is a mutually beneficial business model because it serves the students, whose work is published, as well.