Shhh! It’s not about numbers

Since I last wrote in this blog, my life has kind of taken another twist. I left working in news to pursue a dream I’ve always had, that is teaching what I’m passionate about, Journalism, at a school I love dearly.

I work tirelessly with students on improving their storytelling skills and getting them to think creatively. But I worry that the cruel world that online journalism can be, and I say “can” — meaning it’s all about hit counts and quantity over quality — will eat them up.

Yes, I mentioned this to them toward the end of the term. Warning them to be careful of this numbers-game, and to think about quality first and foremost. Maybe I’ve been drinking too much ivory-tower Kool-Aid thinking of this perfect world that’s out there. I’m not too far removed from newsrooms to know that feeling of numbers, numbers, numbers. It sucks.

I feel like I want to shield the next generation of journalism students from what is wrong with the news industry today (Lindsay Lohan in jail is the top news story tonight and no. 3 on Google Trends).

It will come down to the great mentors and talent who surround the next generation of journalists to lead by example. Hey, if any quality-over-quantity journalists are out there reading this, please show them the way.

Advertisement