I think there’s a big place for a Kickstarter for journalism- consumers pay to get the news that they want to hear. I saw this most during the Occupy actions last year. Livestreamers would go out and cover events in their cities, funded through donations. People found livestreamers whose actions and viewpoints got them their news best, and then paid them directly. I’m sure a lot of them felt the thrill of hearing their name thanked over a livestream watched by 1000s. But others were simply paying for journalism- and in a way big news organizations are not prepared to replicate. These weren’t micropayments, but (often) funding of specific things. This month’s cell phone bill, a better camera for better video, a light to see the action better. The connection between spending your money and the results it brings needs to be tight. Watsi knows this about philanthropy and executes perfectly. Maybe we need something similar to that for journalism. This doesn’t leave much room for profit, but I often prefer news sources without profit as a primary goal (Mother Jones, NPR, et al.)

This is similar to the change the music industry is going through. There will always be enough money to fund the creation of good music and good journalism. The question is how it will be distributed in the future, and whether those industries will still generate the profit they used to.

Musicians now release their albums independently for free or cheap, and then make their cash from live shows and selling merchandise. This directly funds the artist, but doesn’t leave room for a record company to take it’s cut. This freaks out the music industry exactly the way the journalism industry is freaking out. I think we are shifting away from following organizations for our news to following individuals and funding them directly. Talking to them on Twitter. Impacting what they cover next. As much as big news organizations try to imitate this, it’s never the same as talking to and donating to an independent journalist. Like the difference between seeing your favorite band in a tight little club and at a stadium. There might not be enough profit around to fund big newsrooms full of reporters at desks, but I am pretty sure there will be enough money for reporters to make a living, especially if they can come together in collectives in coworking spaces like the leanest of start-ups do.