Sustaining Journalistic Entrepreneurship

Abstract

Structural change in the media ecology has opened up a range of opportunities for startups, as this report has detailed. Media entrepreneurs have flexed their
muscles creating all manner of new sites, products and services in the journalism ecology. Many have launched blogs or niche interest sites, forums or digital
communities; others trade on civic, investigative or citizen journalism; others on technology and production. This chapter recognizes the valid addition of these
sites to the potential career path of a journalist and the increasing likelihood for journalists to work within, create or alongside such journalistic entities. Where once innovation and change happened slowly, current media technologies are developing continually and the rate of product development has increased exponentially.
As part of the interview process to create the SuBMoJour database, researchers had the opportunity to discuss with media managers about the range of skills required to sustain journalistic entrepreneurship. Not all interviewees participated in these discussions. However, the interviews were free enough to allow for subjective information to be solicited where possible as to the journey experienced towards sustainability. Of the responses collated, there were several points of advice from journalism entrepreneurs worthy of note. These are detailed below in the intention of
helping those planning their own startup by giving some lived experience of more established entrepreneurs. These are not intended as a definitive list but go some way to identify the scope and reach of possible skills development and research in the future.