What’s Needed in the Newsroom in 2008

Via Romenesko:

Even at the college level, where you might expect all students to be on board with the notion of a digital-centric, publish-it-right-now, multi-media approach to news, I still run into budding journalists who cling to the hope of finding a traditional newspaper reporting job. Especially in the newspaper profession, the notion — outdated, in my view — that print still reigns supreme remains strong...

One thing that’s important in effecting cultural change in a newsroom is to get everyone involved in using new forms of digital media. Imagine if everyone in your news organization maintained a blog, an active page on Facebook, and participated in other innovative new media forms (e.g., Twitter). By actually living the digital life and embracing it (even if you’re forced to by your boss), you’ll better understand how the modern consumer interacts with media and news. [source]

Yikes. Full disclosure–I Facebook, but am growing more frustrated with it by the day. I deleted my Myspace, and I don’t Twitter. And I still like holding a paper paper. And am still clinging to the idea that “they” won’t “make” me take pictures or do video, because a visual person I ain’t.

But of course I know Steve Outing in this column is entirely correct. We’re all going to be dragged kicking, screaming, and clutching piles of newsprint into the Internet. Folk like me will have an easier time of it, but I’m still stubborn and I admit it.

Does anyone reading this Tweet? Can somebody explain the appeal, or is it just one of those fads destined to disappear?