Rocky's Loss Nothing To Celebrate
Despite Comments From Polis, Losing a Newspaper is Bad News
Mar 4, 2009
Recent comments from Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) about the closing of The Rocky Mountain News show a lack of respect in these troubled economic times.
Journalism and Media
"I have to say, that when we say, 'Who killed The Rocky Mountain News,' we're all part of it, for better or worse, and I argue it's mostly for the better," Polis said Feb. 28 at a forum for online supporters of progressive politics. "The media is dead, and long live the new media, which is all of us."
As has been well chronicled, The Rocky had been in existence since 1859, having survived the Civil War and the Great Depression. Two Great Depressions, in fact. The long economic downturn beginning in 1873 was known as the Great Depression until the 1930s economic disaster. However, the period some have started calling the Great Recession and the Internet age have been attributed by many to be the causes for the death of The Rocky.
Economy
With hundreds of thousands of people requesting first-time unemployment benefits every month and media companies cutting thousands of workers, including Gannett's decision to lay off 3,000 employees by December, people in many industries are hurting. Every day's news seems to be a bit worse as the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummets below 7,000, less than half its record high value in 2007.
Those facts put Polis's comments in far worse relief than had they simply been uttered in isolation. If the economy weren't contracting at a clip only exceeded by the painful recession of the early 1980s and if news outlets like The Seattle Post-Intelligencer hadn't announced their impending demises, Polis's comment could simply have been viewed as counterproductive. However, given everything the nation is going through, it smacks of gloating over the loss of jobs and livelihoods of hundreds of journalists.
Politics and Democracy
It's certainly true that media outlets need to do a better job of navigating the Internet age. However, the loss of newspapers and broadcast outlets who stop sending their signals for the last time is one that damages the very principles behind a robust democracy. Political scientists say that the U.S. Constitution is based on a principle of checks and balances among the three branches of government. However, news outlets that provide that serve as the public's watchdog are the ultimate check and balance against governments national and local. Losing one of the pillars of journalism is a sign that democracy itself is under attack from within.
To his credit, Polis took a different approach when confronted Monday about his remarks.
"It's not just 200 jobs that have been lost; it's also the silencing of a voice," he said. "The rise of new media and citizen journalism has hastened the demise of many newspapers, and we, unfortunately, all share in the blame."
Unfortunately, it was too little, too late for many journalists who were angered by Polis's comments. If there's any justice, Polis will also start looking for work in November 2010.
