Watch: Senate Hearing on the Future of Journalism
Update, 12:13 a.m. Very thoughtful discussion. Kerry asks a crucial question around minute 180: Essentially, what type of antitrust (temporary) legislative/regulatory fix could the aggregators (Google/Huffington) live with so that newspapers could sit down, en masse, and work out a deal so that everyone wins? (photo credit New Yorker; Steve Coll’s blog about his experience testifying.)
Update, 11:26 p.m. EST: If you don’t have time to listen to the whole thing (!), an interesting discussion breaks out around minutes 135-150 and on after that. Did I hear a politician complaining that the demise of local reporting might mean her peers (or her) won’t be investigated and watched? And that she’s worried about that? This could be the last time you hear that said in public.
Update, 10: 45 p.m. EST: The webcast is archived here. What do you think? In this era of the 30-second sound bite, this sucker went on for nearly four hours. I know this was about the future of journalism, but I must say I feel bad for the gals and guys who had to report on this hearing. It’s almost like having to serve drinks at your own wake.
Update, 6:00 p.m. EST: I was going to try to post the full video and noticed the hearing is still going on. I will try to find a link to the full question-and-answer session later.
The live webcast is accessible here. (2:45 p.m.)
Witnesses and links to testimony:
Opening Remarks
Panel 1
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Senator Ben Cardin Senator United States Senate |
Panel 2
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Marissa Mayer Vice President, Search Products & User Experience Google Inc. |
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Alberto Ibargüen President and Chief Executive Officer John S. And James L. Knight Foundation |
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David Simon Author, TV Producer and Former Newspaperman |
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Steve Coll Former Managing Editor The Washington Post |
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James Moroney Publisher/CEO The Dallas Morning News |
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Arianna Huffington Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief The Huffington Post |