[AEJMC Newspaper Division list] name change discussion

[thornton.b at comcast.net]

When I started working in a newsroom in 1971 everyone was talking about the 
death of newspapers.
They said newspapers were dinosaurs, about to go out of business any second.
So here we are almost 40 years later, having the same discussion.
And yet somehow newspapers survive.
How is that?
Let me be so bold as to make a prediction:
The New York Times will still be healthy 50 years from now. 
Same with Washington Post, LA Times, Chicago Tribune and Wall Street Journal.
These are all well-known brand names. Readers know and respect them.
Granted, due to technology, these newspapers will likely not be printed on paper 
anymore.
So what? We will still call it a newspaper. People will probably have an option 
of getting it downloaded to their computer daily or to some portable device with 
updates throughout the day. Or subscribers can get it printed up and thrown in 
their driveways, if they want, probably for an extra price. 
I know that is expensive and bad for the environment but like it or not there 
are going to be holdouts who like the portability of a paper.

But to the larger question: we in the Newspaper Division have a duty to remain the newspaper division as long as there are newspapers. 
Unlike other academic departments, such as philosophy, we have an industry that we answer to. 

We train students for that industry. And if we are smart we keep in touch with editors and help students find work.Yes, I get mad as hell at the industry sometimes for its stupidity, such as cutting back staff just at a time when people are turning off and not reading newspapers. That's like reducing chefs and making lousier food just when people are thinking about eating out less at restaurants. So we can and must be newspaper critics. But we are vitally linked to the newspaper business.
Anyway, not to repeat what many have said - but we need to remain the newspaper division.
And that is a division that accepts and understands the news business in a way that other people do not.
I both loved and hated the 12 years I worked in a newsroom. I loved the excitement and being in the know.
And I hated the cheapness and the exploitation.
And I can imagine the reaction of many of my crusty city editors if they find out we in academia have abandoned them and are now calling ourselves the information delivery division.
That's my two cents worth - and please let's have a vote before any name change.

Brian Thornton, associate professor, University of North Florida.