From Matt Thompson at the Reynolds Institute at University of Missouri comes a very sound series of questions for journalists in an era of overload. I thought it would make a strong post at year's end on the way in which we need to ask ourselves about our craft as we proceed in an environment of taxing information for consumers.
His 10 questions include:
1. . Are we making our community feel better-informed or merely distracted?
2. How important is this for our community to know and why?
3. Are we chasing the larger story, or just the latest story?
4. Are we synthesizing information, or merely aggregating it?
5. How are we serving those who know [nothing | a lot] about the topic?
6. Have we provided a clear trail through our coverage?
7. Are we using 1,000 words where a picture should be?
8. How good are our filters?
9. Will our coverage find its audience where and when they’re ready for it?
10. How are we managing our own info overload?
