As the highway continues to develop, important questions remain for the news industry: What does the information superhighway mean for the future of the news media? Will journalists become obsolete? And what will be the consequences for news consumers? … If the information superhighway is good for the news industry, it also is good for journalists. Easier access to data and people empower reporters to file better stories under tighter deadlines than ever before. Journalists also will not be immune to the trend of telecommuting.
Predictor: Freedom Forum
Prediction, in context:The 1995 book “The Information Revolution,” edited by Donald Altschiller, carries a reprint of the May, 1994, Freedom Forum article “Information Superhighway,” by an unbylined author or authors. The article reads:”The next person who compiles a list of journalism pioneers might want to save a footnote for New York Times reporter John Markoff, early cyberscribe. Fifteen years ago, Markoff was a news-service reporter in Silicon Valley when curiosity caused him to log onto ARPAnet, the Pentagon-funded computer network used by elite scientists to swap data. It was an unheard audacity, like crashing an ultra-exclusive cocktail party. But Markoff stayed, and he gained entree to high-powered electronic conversations and contacts unknown elsewhere. ‘I really was the only kid on my block when I started,’ he said. ‘I had a window into a world that no one else had … Most of my sources are available over the ‘Net. I use it as much as my telephone.’ Today, millions of people worldwide use Internet, ARPAnet’s descendent, whose offerings compare to those of a megalopolis. Markoff has seen his edge erode as more reporters mine computer networks for sources, ideas, and data. Still, he depends on Internet every day as an essential tool of his trade. … As the highway continues to develop, important questions remain for the news industry: What does the information superhighway mean for the future of the news media? Will journalists become obsolete? And what will be the consequences for news consumers? … If the information superhighway is good for the news industry, it also is good for journalists. Easier access to data and people empower reporters to file better stories under tighter deadlines than ever before. Journalists also will not be immune to the trend of telecommuting – working from home or other remote site without going to the office. ‘I already work in a virtual newsroom,’ said Markoff, who is based in San Francisco. He uses his phone, modem, laptop computer and Internet to report and to communicate with his New York Times editors.”
Date of prediction: January 1, 1994
Topic of prediction: Getting, Sharing Information
Subtopic: Journalism/Media
Name of publication: The Information Revolution (book)
Title, headline, chapter name: Information Superhighway
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
Pages 94 - 97
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Guarino, Jennifer Anne