MORBID SYMPTOMS Between a dying and a re-birth (apologies to Gramsci)

This paper argues that despite an appearance of rupture, journalism is in an era of good fortune. While it would be both premature and historically naïve to point at a new “golden era”, there is reason to see a strengthening of journalism's sense of core responsibilities emerging from the challenges and opportunities which new technologies present. With an eye towards journalism's history as a force with the potential to feed contemporary debate, this paper briefly surveys the relationship between technological innovation and role perceptions of journalism. Against this backdrop, it evaluates the discourses of professional ideals and norms within the elite press in Britain in 2011 and 2012, in the context of new media technologies.