Editor’s Note: All opinion section content reflects the views of the individual author only and does not represent a stance taken by The Collegian or its editorial board.
Newspapers have lost the original purpose of journalism — to spread factual information to a wide audience — all in the pursuit of profit.
Picture this: Instead of scrolling when you wake up, you pivot and decide to read the latest news. Upon clicking the latest New York Times story, you’re immediately stopped dead in your tracks with a screen that reads: “Click here to gain unlimited access to the Times.”
I’ve been a victim of this phenomenon too many times to count, and honestly, it sucks.
Younger generations constantly receive an endless amount of hate for getting all of their news on social media. But the truth is that most young adults simply can’t afford a monthly subscription to a news website, nor do they really feel the need to. Why buy a subscription when you can read an infographic on Instagram? Why pay to tune in to national politics when you can watch a recap on TikTok?
Social media, especially considering how easy it is to spread misinformation, has become an efficient way to stay informed while being a present member of society. Almost every person under the age of 50 has a social media presence of some kind, but how many 20-somethings have a subscription to The Washington Post?
So why does every news site under the sun keep paywalls around if it hurts how many people can actually access the information they publish? The answer lies in revenue — not a shocker. While the profit and business side of modern-day journalism is imperative to keep media jobs around, why should the public, who constantly seeks information, suffer because of it? With more and more conglomerates also buying out local papers, the journalism world as we once knew it is now fading.
As reputable news sources become harder and harder to access for free, it also kills the ability to differentiate between fake news and factual information, especially in young people. Social media holds some of the responsibility for this, largely due to misinformed content created by influencers — who many forget are rarely PR-trained — which is then taken as absolute truth by their viewers.
The real culprit, however, is the lack of news literacy taught in our society. While this is drilled into the mind pretty frequently if your academic focus lies in media or communication, learning such literacy is not the status quo for many. And this isn’t only an issue for younger people; my parents, for example, interact with hundreds of pieces of falsified information on the internet weekly, including AI-generated videos that don’t explicitly indicate how they were created.
So why are we, as a collective society, allowing news organizations — an industry that was created to serve the people — to gatekeep truthful, valuable information? News should be free, and knowing who produces the information you consume is imperative to remain an informed member of society. Bottom line, until paywalls fall, stay informed and be skeptical, within reason, of the information you consume.
Reach Gia Galindo Bartley at letters@collegian.com or on social media @RMCollegian.