From the Newsroom, June
I happened upon one of my favourite T-shirts in a Melbourne op-shop. It was a random find for a journalist.
“What’s the difference between the Dallas Morning News and the Times Herald?’’ the front of the shirt reads, fading yellow text on red cotton.
“Over 125,000 more papers daily & Sunday. The Dallas Morning News.” The response on the back.
Whack. I’m always surprised at how many people ask to read the punchline having read the front.
Competition between media outlets and moguls is the stuff of legends. Reputations and fortunes are made and lost. Right now Amazon owner Jeff Bezos’ Washington Post and The New York Times are in a truly epic battle. The arena is Donald Trump and his presidency and we are all the winners. Winners because of the stories that are being told and the example it sets for other media organisations. And winners because the exclusive-led journalistic slug-fest is reminder of the need for quality journalism.
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