I asked several reporters, editors, and scholars what journalists should do to get ready for the next wave of firings. There were three strong consensus answers: first, get good at understanding and presenting data. Second, understand how social media can work as a newsroom tool. Third, get whatever newsroom experience you can working in teams, and in launching new things.

 

The intennable Clay Shirky on the “uncertain” future of print journalism. Spoiler alert: it’s not uncertain, it’s very certain.

Mental Illness

When a man who spent decades making us laugh and cry takes his own life we have to wonder what we’re doing wrong. He gave us so much joy, but never found the help he needed. If you do not feel good – get help. I won’t judge or make fun. I can’t. I too have needed help with how I feel. It’s hard, but it does get better.

How do You Define “Public”?

“Public is not simply defined. Public is not just what can be viewed by others, but a fragile set of social conventions about what behaviors are acceptable and appropriate. There are people determined to profit from expanding and redefining what’s public, working to treat nearly everything we say or do as a public work they can exploit. They may succeed before we even put up a fight.”

Anil Dash on “What is Public?

Cognitive Biases in Software Engineering

“This is one of the harder biases to get over in my opinion, because it means acknowledging our own limitations, and really stressing the fragile parts of the code that we write. We all want and expect our software to work, so we are inescapably drawn to evidence that confirms this desire. Keep fighting this urge, keep testing, and always question your assumptions.”

Jonathan Klein on how our brains deceive us when encountering issues in software development.