Internet Ends Monopoly on Journalism and News Content Production Says Alan Kohler

April 2nd, 2009 by Daniel Young | Filed under Media.

Alan Kohler, Business Spectator

Alan Kohler argued that the Internet has put an end to the cartel which existed between a small number of publishers in the era of print media as it eradicated the high barriers to entry such as printing presses and licenses (in the case of broadcasting).

Print is a highly ineffecient means of conveying news, he said, adding that the Government would be mad to support ‘public trust journalism’ via print publications. He viewed the recent increase in subsidies for print media legislated by Sarkozy as the latest example of ‘loopy French economics’.

Kohler – as an online publisher – strongly supports the trend towards digital media stating that the industry is in a transition mode. These points formed part of a panel discussion for the ABC’s Saturday Extra program on Radio National entitled, Quality Journalism: How Pays? Does it Matter?

Alan Kohler is the publisher of Business Spectator (online business and finance news) and The Eureka Report (subscription based investor news service). He said that the Business Spectator – founded 16 months ago – would ‘make a profit before too long’.

Philanthropic support and/or Government funding could help protect public interest journalism in Australia, according to Eric Beecher, publisher of Crikey.

The panel also included Wendy Bacon (Centre for Independent Journalism, UTS), John Hewson (Liberal Party Federal Leader, 19901-994) and Campbell Reid (Group Editorial Director, News Limited) with Geraldine Doogue, as moderator/presenter.

I have mixed feelings about the decline of newspapers. I agree that traditional mass media is effectively a monopoly but its also representative of national consciousness (imperfectly but as close as we know), it leads and sets the agenda. Digital media lets the audience set their personal agenda and that has inherent limitations (you don’t know what you don’t know).

I’d like to think that the power of the Internet to mobilize large numbers of people around campaigns and ideas will be effective in holding our institutions to account in the future but this still requires instigation, leadership. The danger is that we lose print media and have nothing to fill the void and each individual retreats into their own echo chamber of self determined media, opinion and content.