15 febrero 2007

Desde el otro lado de la trinchera

Has business journalism gotten better or worse in the past 10 years? Why?

Overall, in terms of print, and online, I think the quality of business journalism has improved significantly. This trend is fueled by the increased interest in business — perhaps as the result of greater share ownership and interest in the stock market. The new crop of young journalists at the top business magazines or papers, such as Fortune, BusinessWeek, New York Times, etc. tend to be more knowledgeable about business in general, and some even hold MBAs or other advanced degrees.

They are skeptical, knowledgeable, relentlessly curious about business, and quite willing to report about interesting business successes. One exception to this general trend: the truly awful, idolatrous business reporting — both in print and in broadcast — covering the Internet and telecom booms (or bubbles) of the late ’90s and into 2000. Many print and business reporters did not question “facts” such as every business must have an Internet strategy; or the importance of being first to the market; or the seemingly endless appetite for broadband capacity.

What are some of the biggest mistakes you still see happening in business journalism?

Short-term thinking and focus on every little vibration of the stock market as a point of interest, without truly understanding economic trends. Some reporters still lack basic understanding of business principals and statistics, so they continue to make mistakes when reporting economic and financial news.

(Hope Heyman, experta en Relaciones Públicas, vicepresidente senior de la oficina de Edelman en Nueva York, entrevistada por Chris Roush en Talking Biz News).

Toda la interesantísima entrevista, aquí.

No hay comentarios: