I ran a station in West Virginia. What’s happening now feels familiar.
If you’ve ever worked in a newsroom, you’ll recognize this moment: the turning point when you switch from business as usual to all hands on deck.
Think about Sept. 11., Jan. 6 or the start of the pandemic. At some point, you realize you need to stop everything and throw all resources at the emergency.
We are now experiencing that moment in public media. Even though the law prevents it, the president is attempting to replace CPB board members and immediately end federal funding. The FCC has launched an investigation into public media underwriting.
Related Knowledge Center: State of the business model
The traditional journalism business model has long since collapsed, and news organizations have shrunk or disappeared entirely. While a number of promising experiments are under way, the public has not shown a willingness to buy what news organizations are selling.
Related Knowledge Center: Inside the newsroom
As newsrooms struggle with rickety business models and precarious finances — as well as new technologies — they are deploying an array of editorial responses.
The Times and its critics | Washington Post mortem