The fact of the matter is that traditional news enterprises are on the wane. This is perhaps most obvious in print media, which is currently dying a slow and painful death as it struggles to squeeze an ever greater amount of internet-ready ‘content’ from an ever smaller number of qualified, experienced journalists. However, the decline in traditional news productions isn’t just limited to print; observe how CNN struggles to hold onto a dwindling viewership by running increasingly sensational stories of little journalistic merit. A prime example would be the obsessive, lurid coverage over the missing MH370 Malaysian Airline plane. CNN’s wild theories- I’m sure there was at least one person who wondered on air whether the incident was the work of aliens- may have made great fodder for the Daily Show, but I found it disheartening that a major international news organisation with such considerable resources was stooping to National Enquirer level reporting.
