– Getting ‘soul’ –
But with traditional news media hurting, it remains unclear how the industry can support the kind of journalism needed to keep people informed as it has in the past.
Mutter said what people read may change – it may be sponsored or subsidized in a way that may or may not be transparent.
“It won’t necessarily be real journalism, but it will be content,” he said.
Paulson said that while Facebook can deliver much of the information from newspapers, “it would be hard pressed to capture the soul” of traditional print news.
“Freedom of the press was established to keep an eye on people in power and inform the community,” he added. “There’s a tremendous public spirit component that you can’t address with an algorithm.”
Paulson said that while Facebook is a useful platform for sharing, it will not underwrite the kind of investigative journalism upon which newspapers often pride themselves. With journalism retrenching, that weakens the entire democratic process.
“We get the kind of news we deserve and are willing to pay for,” Paulson added.
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