{"id":2457656,"date":"2020-04-24T22:40:00","date_gmt":"2020-04-25T04:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/on-journalism-and-capitalism\/"},"modified":"2020-04-25T08:15:28","modified_gmt":"2020-04-25T14:15:28","slug":"on-journalism-and-capitalism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/on-journalism-and-capitalism\/","title":{"rendered":"On journalism and capitalism"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Aspen Times publisher Samantha Johnston revealed most publishers don\u2019t have journalism degrees in her Ask the Publisher column (\u201cWho\u2019s on first? Defining our roles in the newsrooms,\u201d<\/a> April 19, aspentimes.com). Instead, the person on the top rung of the newspaper ladder outside of the board of directors of whatever communications conglomerate owns the paper is more likely to have a background in business\/advertising.<\/p>\n

Perhaps that\u2019s what\u2019s wrong with the print media. It\u2019s a classic case of misguided motivations so endemic of our capitalist society.<\/p>\n

With an AB in journalism from Indiana University \u201973, I can attest the overriding objective you\u2019re taught is to report the news fairly and accurately. I had an MBA candidate for a roommate and it was obvious he was learning how to turn a profit.<\/p>\n

The two goals can come into conflict. If, for example, a reporter digs up a story where one of the paper\u2019s major advertisers was involved in malfeasance, the publisher might spike that piece thinking about the paper\u2019s bottom line.<\/p>\n

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