THE FUTURE (?) OF ARTS JOURNALISM

posted by James Reel

Here’s an interesting article about the future of arts journalism—that is, how the arts will be reported on and reviewed in a society in which newspapers either don’t care about such things or don’t exist at all. One trend: fired newspaper critics are getting published at online-only sites. This is fine, except that these sites are run on a shoestring budget, and most of the contributors don’t get paid. My rule is, if you aren’t paid for your work, you’re not a professional, no matter how “authoritative” your writing is. So even though these arts sites are springing up (don’t be surprised if some ex-Citizen people find their way to one), the future of professional arts journalism remains dire.