Can Government Support the Press? Historicizing and Internationalizing a Policy Approach to the Journalism Crisis

Abstract

Although consensus has been reached that journalism is in crisis, few agree on the nature of its decline or the means of resolving it. After providing an overview of this ongoing debate, the author contextualizes the journalism crisis within several historical, political, intellectual, and structural processes that help highlight what is at stake and what can be done to support the journalism required for a democratic society in the United States. He concludes with an emphasis on normative considerations regarding the future of journalism and provides several policy proposals that aim to provide the resources necessary for a robust and independent press. These policies, he suggests, will help facilitate the transition from a failing commercial media system to a public-service model of the press.