Wired editor Chris Anderson, author of The Long Tail and the newly released Free, tells Spiegel Online he doesn't use words like journalism, news and media. They're meaningless in the 21st century, he asserts.

Are there alternatives? No, "we're in one of those strange eras where the words of the last century don't have meaning."

Anderson says he reads a lot of mainstream media content, but it comes through Twitter or RSS, a world of technical filters and word of mouth instead of professional filters.

"I figure by the time something gets to me it's been vetted by those I trust. So the stupid stuff that doesn't matter is not going to get to me."

As for the craft of journalism, Anderson acknowledges no one has a new business model to pay for what used to be paid for.

"In the past, the media was a full-time job. But maybe the media is going to be a part time job. Maybe media won't be a job at all, but will instead be a hobby."