Downie On Watergate, Future of Newspapers, Blah Blah Blah

From former Washington Post Executive Editor Len Downie's recent washingtonpost.com chat: Arlington, Va.: It's come up recently in Howard Kurtz's chats -- whether something might be set up for people to contribute to the cost of producing the newspaper and website, like a voluntary subscription model, maybe something like what public radio does? And in today's New York Times, David Carr writes about whether an iTunes model might be applied to online news content. What do you think -- should readers have to pay for what they read online? Is there a way to make it work better than it has for other online news outlets? Thanks! Leonard Downie Jr.: We must find a way for consumers of news on the Internet to help pay for the reporting of the news by newsrooms large enough and expert enough to deal with the complicated issues of our time and hold those with power accountable to the rest of us. Everything, including non-profit voluntary subscription models like NPR or iTunes model, needs to be explored, without alienating the very large audience that major news sources like The Washington Post, New York Times, CNN, etc. have attracted on the Web. And: Watergate!: I want to write in about not your new book but a piece you wrote recently about whether Watergate would have been covered differently today. The thought that such a story might be missed is horrifying, do you really think it's possible? Leonard Downie Jr.: I really do think that a story like Watergate would be found again today, even more so because of the Internet, which has intensified the scrutiny of everything by professional news oreganizations, bloggers and everyone else. As I wrote, it would probably unfold differently and more quickly because of the Internet. There are many, many good people inside the system who come forward every day to help journalists uncover such stories and many journalists who work hard to find them. And: D.C.: Dude, I know you won't publish/respond to this, but I just wanted you to know that as 35 year reader of the Post I feel qualified to say that it is absolutely tanking, while the NYT is not (yet). The reporting and writing quality is way, way down. Sad. Leonard Downie Jr.: Of course, I'll respond, ignoring the quality of the writing of the question. I think The Post's coverage of the campaign, the current transition of power in Washington, the economic crisis, Iraq and Afghanistan and the war in Gaza, among many other subjects, has been very good. And it still excels in accountability journalism like Walter Reed. Its website is one of the best produced by a traditional news organization, with a very large and steadily growing audience. Like all news organizations now, it is coping with a rapidly changing media environment and economic model, but remains strongly dedicated to public service journalism. And: Advice?: You famously started at the Post as an intern and worked your way up to the top editing job. Given the iffy outlook for newspapers in this country, would you recommend this career path to today's twentysomethings? Leonard Downie Jr.: I would definitely recommend journalism as a career. It is now more dynamic and exciting -- and just as important to our democracy -- than ever. But, because it is also more uncertain in economic structure, I would warn that a career path like mine -- 44 years at one news organization -- is much less likely. So entrants have to be self-reliant enough to go with the flow of the fast-moving currents of the media today.

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Downie On Watergate, Future of Newspapers, Blah Blah Blah

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