Politico and Post-Print Journalism
Gabriel Sherman of The New Republic goes inside the misunderstood, highly caffeinated, just get the scoop world of Politco.com, the news source that took the world by storm during Campaign 2008 with its gossipy but always tantalizing stories:
But Politico reporter Jonathan Martin wasn’t there to chat. Martin pressed Obama about the president’s decision to nominate William J. Lynn III, a former defense lobbyist, to deputy defense secretary and about Obama’s pledge to curtail the influence of lobbyists. The exchange turned tense. “See, this is what happens. I can’t end up visiting with you guys and shaking hands if I’m going to get grilled every time I come down here,” a visibly exasperated Obama said. Martin wouldn’t relent. “I just wanted to say hello and introduce myself to you guys–that’s all I was trying to do,” the president added. Within an hour, Martin and Politicowriter Carrie Budoff Brown reported the exchange on Politico‘s website: “OBAMA FLASHES IRRITATION IN PRESS ROOM,” the headline read.
It was–as world events go–a small story. But Politico writers and editors are masters of knowing what will make prime time. Within a few hours, both The Huffington Post and Drudge Report linked to the story, and, by that evening, the conservative blogosphere lit up with items detailing the exchange. The next morning, Rush Limbaugh used the exchange to mock the new president (“You’re not supposed to ask The Messiah questions unless he’s cleared it,” he sniffed). By the end of the day, the “affair” had made the rounds on CNN and Fox News.
Although an excellent exploration of the intersection of old and new media and the slow death of traditional print media, it also raises some important questions about just what news is and means to modern society. It seems that as we become a society of specialists, each with our own niche and area of expertise, our thirst becomes not for the why and how but for the what. What will become of the exhaustive investigative report, the veritable “think piece” considering who and what we are as a society.
Indeed, at more than 250 words, this post itself is considered long for the blog generation. Whatever happened to analysis? Is there still room to really dissect it all, or do we just want “the scoop”?
