Veteran journalist explains what's really wrong with newspapers

Jon Talton, a 27-year veteran journalist, shares what he believes is really wrong with newspapers on his blog the "Rogue Columnist."
Talton has been a columnist at the Arizona Republic and an editor and columnist at Charlotte Observer, Cincinnati Enquirer, Rocky Mountain News, Dayton Daily News and what is now the North County Times in San Diego.

"We hear endlessly that the troubles are a result of the Internet, new technology, ‘people don’t read anymore,’ and, my favorite, ‘people don’t have as much time as they used to.’ As if there was once a 36-hour day, or people who once worked 12-hour shifts while raising large families had this abundance of time.
These forces are real. And yes, a big swath of the public is distracted by celebrity gossip and gets its ‘news’ from blogs, television and talk radio. What’s less noted is how newspapers themselves contributed to the dumbing down of America. What’s most frustrating is that the discussion fails to focus on the more significant reasons behind the decline in newspaper journalism."

Talton argues that the consolidation of newspapers into large, publically held companies resulted in trying to make Wall Street happy leading to Groupthink, a defensive strategy that cut newsrooms' top talent, and a collapse of leadership.
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