FTC Suggests Tax on Consumer Electronics to "Reinvent Journalism"

[oranger]

meh, I've been getting my news from the net since it bloody well started, or nearly so. I can't remember the last time I opened a newspaper. I think I was 17, which was almost ten years ago. wtf, why do people care about an obsolete form of media? we don't use those giant floppy disks anymore, do we?

 

[mokes310]

First they want us to pay to read online and now this? Things must be bad for them

You think it's bad now? Imagine what it'll be like in 10 years when you have "maybe" five major national newspapers.

...wtf, why do people care about an obsolete form of media? we don't use those giant floppy disks anymore, do we?

Much more goes into Journalism than what you think. It's the style of reporting, the style of writing, and most importantly, the pretence of objective criticism that is at stake! Be careful what you wish for, because you may actually get it...

 

[tkioz]

They can bite me, seriously. bite me.

 

[pneuma08]

First they want us to pay to read online and now this? Things must be bad for them

You think it's bad now? Imagine what it'll be like in 10 years when you have "maybe" five major national newspapers.

...wtf, why do people care about an obsolete form of media? we don't use those giant floppy disks anymore, do we?

Much more goes into Journalism than what you think. It's the style of reporting, the style of writing, and most importantly, the pretence of objective criticism that is at stake! Be careful what you wish for, because you may actually get it...

On the other hand, is this all so dramatic? I mean, a shrinking sector is not necessarily pointing towards death of the sector; sure, the times of major newspapers raking in the big bucks while supplying the nation with thousands of huge, high-quality papers may be over, but that may only mean that the journalists will be fewer, paid less, and newspapers will be smaller operations, not specifically the decline of the quality of journalism, or more specifically objective reporting.

At the very least, I feel that there are enough people who truly care about objective journalism that they will fight tooth and nail to keep it alive, no matter the form.

 

[Wandrecanada]

Why should Americans pay tax to subsidize an industry who has decided that Fox News is the new standard for journalistic excellence? It's not the public who has changed the face of news. It's the media corporations. The reason journalism is failing is because integrity and ethics have taken a back seat to Branjelina and punditry. It's all ratings and stories that sell better. Until journalists and news outlets are willing to start investigating news that matters again, they deserve what they get.

If you want to fund something, fund the AP. They seem to be the only journalistic outlet left who actually investigates anything.

 

[ZippyDSMlee]

Screw the papers they need to offer lite content for free and subscriber content for 2-3 a month or 30-40 a year. Anything more and you will lose consumers......and ars needs to be 2-3 a month not 5+ >>

We do need a tax on digital storage and ISP's so we can balance out copyright issues tho.

 

[Cryo84R]

Actually, this looks like a really great idea to me. Five percent isn't all that much - sure, on a $1000 widescreen TV it is, but in my understanding most consumer electronics don't go for nearly as much, and if you've got that $1k the extra $50 wouldn't make that much of a difference - and with the projected revenues, that could go a long way towards supporting the cost of those subsidies.

And you see nothing bad about the government paying (off) reporters and news agencies?

The BBC is entirely government-funded. Over here, we have three (mostly) government-funded public TV channels and (IIRC) four ditto radio stations - and they're the most reliable audiovisual news sources, better than the commercial stations. If you in the US distrust your own government to such an extent as to be wary of anything they pay for, then you might want to consider emigrating. Only problem is that, apart from Europe and several countries elsewhere in the world, the situation is a LOT worse. So stop overreacting and going "the guvmint paid for this, it sucks/can't be trusted/is evil!" and be happy with the fact you even HAVE free, open politics and the ability to choose your own leaders, as opposed to 80% of the rest of the world, where democracy is either a sham or completely non-existent.

You have to remember that Americans are cut from a different cloth. Our nation was founded on the idea of limited government and out of a war against oppression. We have a cultural distrust of government. Just ask anyone how much they trusted GWB, or the IRS. The overwhelming majority of people in the US believe that Congress is totally out of touch and full of corruption.

Power easily gained is power easily abused. That and tax benefits to failing institutions have a truly awful track record and this would be no different.

 

[mokes310]

First they want us to pay to read online and now this? Things must be bad for them

You think it's bad now? Imagine what it'll be like in 10 years when you have "maybe" five major national newspapers.

...wtf, why do people care about an obsolete form of media? we don't use those giant floppy disks anymore, do we?

Much more goes into Journalism than what you think. It's the style of reporting, the style of writing, and most importantly, the pretence of objective criticism that is at stake! Be careful what you wish for, because you may actually get it...

On the other hand, is this all so dramatic? I mean, a shrinking sector is not necessarily pointing towards death of the sector; sure, the times of major newspapers raking in the big bucks while supplying the nation with thousands of huge, high-quality papers may be over, but that may only mean that the journalists will be fewer, paid less, and newspapers will be smaller operations, not specifically the decline of the quality of journalism, or more specifically objective reporting.

At the very least, I feel that there are enough people who truly care about objective journalism that they will fight tooth and nail to keep it alive, no matter the form.

No offense, but you could not be any more wrong about this subject. Now, before I go any futher, I am not suggesting that we "bail out" newspapers, but we must protect the foundations of democracy. Those foundations, in many ways, revolve around the ideals of objective journalism and free speech. Failure to protect those ideals will have a cascading effect and ultimately lead to an ever increasing presence of outlets like Fox News, CNN, Sky, etc.

Yes, the industry is changing, and perhaps we will no longer need to recieve our news from mediums we've become accustomed to, but the protection of objective journalism is paramount if we are to protect our society as a whole.

 

[dthree]

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is going on here? Why do the industry dregs that refuse to evolve and cling to a dying business model deserve a tax-fueled bailout?