To the Point
Does News Have a Future?
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Does News Have a Future?

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As of last year, more people were getting their news for free on the Internet than were paying for newspapers and magazines.  We hear proposals for preserving journalism as we've come to know it and for creating new ways of serving consumers of information. Also, President Obama warns mayors against misusing stimulus-package funds, and it's time again for the Oscars on Sunday evening. We talk to the President of the National Society of Film Critics.

Banner image: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Making News

Obama Warns Mayors on Misuse of Stimulus Funds ()

President Obama today told the nation's mayors they have a friend in the White House. But he also said he would use the “full power” of the White House to crack down if economic stimulus money is misused or misspent. Frank James reports from Washington the Chicago Tribune and blogs for the paper at The Swamp. 

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Main Topic

Does News Have a Future? ()

Magazines are cutting their staffs as are news broadcasters, both commercial and listener supported. Newspapers have more readers than ever, but they're downsizing and going bankrupt, threatening not just providers of news but the news itself. Major American cities may soon have no papers at all. The problem is that they're giving their product away for free on the Internet, a business model that can't be sustained. Will a new generation of news consumers be willing to pay? We hear different ideas about keeping traditional journalism alive. Is it time to develop new methods for keeping the public informed?

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Reporter's Notebook

Hollywood Rolls Out the Red Carpet Again for the Oscars ()

It may be a myth that people flock to the movies during tough economic times, but the film industry does hope that the audience for Sunday's Oscar Awards will be larger than those of recent years. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader and Slumdog Millionaire are the best picture nominees.  Has this been a good year?  We get an authoritative assessment from Peter Rainer, film critic for the Christian Science Monitor and president of the National Society of Film Critics.

Guests:
  • Peter Rainer: President of the National Society of Film Critics
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