Anna Bevilacqua – 1702504 AD6603 – Fashion Futures – Part Two - Summative 1st January 2020 Word count – 4000
1
Investigating the Future of Fashion Journalism, By Examining the Decline of Print Media, Development of New Technologies and The Increased Use of Social Media as a Form of Journalism.
Abstract In today’s rapidly developing, technological world, where digital social interaction is overturning human interaction and traditional media practises, the future of Fashion Journalism, and Journalism as a communication practise, looks uncertain. With Print Media on the decline, Social Media use and image sharing on the increase, and new Artificial Intelligence being brought into the Journalism space, this essay explores the exciting, innovative developments and future possibilities of this everchanging and evolving medium; like the increasing use of Instagram pages, Micro News Organisations and Artificial Intelligence. Including discussions about how different generations are seeing this change, how well readers can trust online journalism, how much we are being blinkered to certain aspects of journalism, fashion based and otherwise, this essay covers a scope of moral as well as factual analysis. Including interviews from Kate Houghton, the Editor of Living Edge Magazine, Brett Herlingshaw, a second year Journalism student at University of Chester, and Charlie Walden, a first year Journalism Diploma Student at The Sheffield Collage, their insightful words and first hand opinions have challenged and agreed with these new developments to Journalism, and have served as an informative, alternate angle to the new path into the Future of Fashion Journalism.
2
Essay In today’s rapidly developing, technological world, where digital social interaction is overturning human interaction and traditional media practises, the future of Fashion Journalism, and Journalism as a communication practise, looks uncertain. With Print Media on the decline, Social Media use and image sharing on the increase, and new Artificial Intelligence being brought into the Journalism space, this essay explores the exciting, innovative developments and future possibilities of this everchanging and evolving medium. Including interviews from Kate Houghton, the Editor of Living Edge Magazine, Brett Herlingshaw, a second year Journalism student at University of Chester, and Charlie Walden, a first year Journalism Diploma Student at The Sheffield Collage, their insightful words and first hand opinions have challenged and agreed with these new developments to Journalism, and have served as an informative, alternate angle to the new path into the Future of Fashion Journalism. Fashion Journalism has been a traditional form of communication ever since it’s rise in the nineteenth century, when the choice of women’s fashion periodicals began to expand, and fashion writing; in the form of communicating ideas from the higher ends of luxury fashion to a wide readership of socialite woman, was starting to be taken seriously, in an otherwise very male dominated, serious news space. According to FG Magazine, one of the earliest fashion periodicals was ‘The Gallery of Fashion’, which was a publication known as a ‘Fashion Plate’, and which illustrated the high impact fashion had culturally on society. This magazine was published from 1794-1803, and since then print Fashion Journalism has been a thriving business, with Virginia Pope politicising Fashion Journalism in the 1930’s, and increasing its impact further by reporting “hard news,” rather than perhaps the more colourful and creative fashion news outlets that society, especially Generation Z are more drawn to today. Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, and Tatler, as key examples, helped make waves in the space, before Digital Journalism began to take over in the 1980’s, with programs like “Entertainment Tonight” and
3
“Access Hollywood” beginning making fashion a topic of discussion in the digital space and to a wider audience. Traditional Fashion Journalists throughout history primarily served a similar purpose to less specialised Journalists. Specifically focusing on fashion trends, events, celebrity fashion, catwalks, and new developments in the industry, Fashion Journalists and Critics, especially renowned ones such as Robin Givnan at The Washington Post, Isabella Blow at Tatler, and Suzy Menkes at Vogue International, were able to build up strong contacts and a high reputation in the fashion industry, such as with relationships with designers and stylists. As well as having inside industry knowledge, a love for fashion, communication, research and story-telling, traditional Fashion Journalist’s needed a strong ability to write, report and narrate, and were often trained to a high standard. Mainly working for printed publications, these worldrenowned Journalists were able to successfully build up not only the reputation of themselves as writers, but also rise the reputation of the publications they worked for, thus creating large readerships and markets for these luxury publications. However, moving forward towards the 21st century, Print Journalism has been on the steady decline for a number of years. Digital communication, including: Blogging, online Journalism and Social Media Journalism has, in the words of The Guardian “murdered” the traditional skill of writing, narrating, researching and reporting; skills that had previously enabled Journalists to find success within the Fashion Journalism, and wider Journalism field. Since the rise of Digital Media, the way readers consume and access news and images has developed onwards and changed the Journalism space forever, be that specifically with fashion news or otherwise, and be that either for better or for worse, depending on personal perspective. With the rise of Blogging and Social Media, and Bloggers and users being able to share and react to news and images instantly, this often blurs the line between identifying who is a professional writer, and who is just sharing information for their own enjoyment and benefit. In an online questionnaire carried out, the question “with Social Media allowing anyone to share news or their opinions, fashion based or otherwise, do you think the line between professional 4
journalism and personal self-expression online is becoming blurry?” was asked. 64.7% of participants expressed the opinion that ‘yes’, it is often hard to tell who isn’t a trained writer.’ In more recent times, with the rise of Social Media Journalism overtaking Print Journalism, due to news sharing being so instant, accessible and readily available online, Marie Claire Magazine are set to stop producing their print magazine and are going fully digital as of November 2019, due to the level of print advertising decreasing by 25% in 2018, and down again by a further 30% in 2019. Adding to this move towards a fully digital space for the future of Journalism, NME Magazine closed in March 2018, as well as Bliss, Nuts, and ID Magazine to go fully digital. In today’s technologically advancing world however, with news being so accessible online, it has been questioned whether print publications are still needed or desired by readers. The question was asked “How often do you purchase printed magazines or newspapers, be they fashion based or otherwise?” and 52.9% of participants answered only one a year, with 11% answering with never. To further emphasise this decline of Print Media, in a study by the BBC, it had been discovered that there is becoming less and less money in traditional news and image sharing, be that fashion based or otherwise, due to the changing digital space and new economics because of this. This report expanded on the decline of Print Journalism, and suggested that it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep local and regional print magazines afloat due to the cost of the production compared to how much information readers can consume online for a lower cost. However, as these smaller press outlets are continuing to struggle, more tech savvy, digital Journalism organisations, such as Buzzfeed for example, are becoming increasingly successful due to the company monetizing news and images by including “branded content” and “native advertising” and the use of paid advertisements. The banding of content, and including advertisements or sponsors, could be the avenue Journalism outlets, especially digital ones, may need to go down to ensure their company is not losing out on sales and readers due to the decline of print media. The decline of Print Media however, has been proved to affect some generations more than others. In a study by “Agility PR Solutions”, they investigated how different generations 5
consume news in this digital era and the impact this has. According to this study, 2/3 of Generation Z, branded as the digitally native generation, prefer modern Journalism that includes the use of Virtual Reality, and Augmented Reality. Moreover, this source also explained that 59% of Generation Z listed Social Networking sites as their first and second most important news outlet, whereas only 18% of Baby Boomers agreed with Social Media being the most important source. Adding to this and including the rise of Youtube as a Journalistic platform, 49% of Generation Z and 44% of Millennials claimed Youtube was an important news source to them, compared to Baby Boomers; 60% of which said printed magazines were still their most used and important source to consume news and images. This study almost proves that the younger generations are more adept, understanding and aware of the shift to this new digital space for Journalism, while some Baby Boomers, due to the way they have been brought up and due to them having living in the pre-digital space, are perhaps struggling with modern Journalism, and today’s principle of mobile and internet news consumption first, and print fashion news after. With younger generations focusing on Digital Journalism, the question “through which channel do you consume journalistic articles and posts, be they fashion based or otherwise?” was asked and 58% of people stated through Social Media, and 41% of people said through a specialised digital news application. However, with sustainability being an important topic at the moment, not just in the Fashion and Journalism Industry, but wider, more industrial industries also, a print free, fully digital future for Journalism and Fashion Journalism may be the more sustainable option for the future of Fashion Journalism. Over 50% of the questionnaire correspondents agreed. To further this on, the question “do you think other print publications will soon follow suit? was asked, and 76.5% of people said ‘yes, print will go fully digital in the future.’ Therefore, with print Fashion Journalism almost definitely set to disappear in the near future, questions about how Social Media, and digital platforms will take over journalism, have been asked, as well as the pros and cons of the increase of Digital Native Journalists, being discussed. There are a number of positive aspects to Digital Journalism being used over Print 6
Journalism, that will continue to increase and change to Future of Journalism. Digital Journalism, fashion based or otherwise, either on Social Media, through an online news organisation, or a blog, gives the writer on some occasions unlimited space to write and express the news and images creatively, and in a more personal way which matched their personal brand image and concept. Rather than having to restrict in a physical sense an article to fit in a magazine or newspaper layout, Digital Journalism or Social Media often can allow Journalists more freedom and space, can allow for links to external resources, thus increasing a readers’ education and awareness of a certain subject which they may have been otherwise restricted to in print publications, and also a greater number of images. Moving forward, another advantage of Digital Media is real-time updates or corrections to misinformation, which in some cases could allow articles to be rectified or developed. Questions of how Social Media and Digital Journalism will adapt and influence the future of Journalism, have also been considered. An article by The New York Times, questioned whether “Closet Accounts” on Instagram would take over the Journalism space in the future. These accounts are set up as gossip and news sharing pages devoted to specific individuals in the public eye, who have a great influence over fashion. Closet Accounts source the breaking news surrounding these people, and items of clothing these individuals wear almost instantly, and share them with a following of thousands; in a much quicker time frame than any fashion publication would be able to. Rather than a time in the past where millennials would have to wait a week, or perhaps a month for their publication to be released to consume their fashion news, gossip and images, these closet accounts share the breaking news instead, saving time and money on print costs as everything is so instant. The rise of these accounts, as well as YouTube platforms providing the same service, could be where the future of Fashion Journalism lies. However, in the online questionnaire carried out, 41% of partakers did not know what a ‘Closet Account’ was, so perhaps this avenue needs more development further along in the future, to capture and make online fashion news more accessible and relatable for not just Generation Z but for Millennials and Generation X also. 7
Moreover, the Instagram account Diet Prada also acts a more political fashion sharing space, sharing critics, and opinions on the fashion industry and developments within it. Naomi Campbell, Edward Enninful and Gigi Hadid all follow the account, and Diet Prada’s primary focus is to expose designs which copy too closely the original garments. In today’s call out culture, where Generation Z are seeking transparency and truth in all aspects of their fashion, news and image consumption, Diet Prada’s exposure of the truth could be a Key Performance Indicator of why the page and brand is doing so well online in delivering news and images to its increasingly wide readership. Consumers desire truth rather more than trivial gossip, which could be argued is found in abundance in printed tabloid magazines, so with Diet Prada beginning to show this clarity to readers, this could be the potential future of Fashion Journalism, if more Social Media accounts delivered their information and images in this clear, more truthful, political style. However, although Diet Prada are arguably truthful online, with social sharing being so popular in the Journalism space, the element of truth within other Digital Journalism outlets often gets lost and confused, with everyone writing online seeming to have a bias opinion, or are writing to gain a particular reaction or to cause some sort of effect within their target readership. In the past with traditional, more broadsheet-based Fashion Journalism, the element of truth may have been easier to understand and recognise, as coming from a wellrespected source with a high reputation and from a trained Journalist, readers expected factual truth in what they were reading. However, it could be argued that the element of truth is somewhat lost online by the mass amount of news outlets available, and from our constant exposure to news stories or images, be they fashion based or otherwise. For example, on Twitter, Tatler’s followers receive a mass amount of information each day, as Tatler repost the same news stories and articles several times a day, just with a different image on the Tweet each time, to make the news seem new and fresh. From this, readers may struggle to know which article is most truthful and relevant, and this example also begs the question of how many times readers online need to be fed and overexposed to information and images through 8
the day. This is very much a con for Digital Journalism, and could be the aspect that holds its development back moving forward. In an article by Kimberley Lestieux, she said that “fake news, incorrect facts and information, is dangerous for society and democracy. Spreading these kinds of rumours can have an impact on users who aren't necessarily responsible online and don't verify a source, and information.” In the same online questionnaire, the question “with Social Media becoming an accepted platform for journalism and influencers being able to share information, images and opinions at any time, how far do you agree that this has limited the amount of factual information and truth we receive, especially when everyone has a biased opinion?” was asked, with 52% strongly agreeing, and a further 35% agreeing.
To develop my research further, I carried out an interview via email exchange with Kate Houghton, the Editor of Cheshire’s Luxury Lifestyle Print Publication; Living Edge. The objective of the interview was to discover Kate’s inside opinion on my previous research findings, and on how she feels her Print Publication will be affected by the Decline of Print Media and increase of Social Media. The interview went as follows. Q- There has been evidence that traditional print Journalism is on the decrease. My current research has informed me that Marie Claire Magazine are set to stop producing their print magazine and are going fully digital as of November 2019, due to the level of print advertising decreasing by 30% in 2019. With this in mind, has the shift to a more digital space for Journalism effected your premium monthly printed publication at all, and do you think that the printed Living Edge Magazine will be affected by this change in the future? A- We haven’t had this experience to this extent, no. We are operating in a different space to the huge magazines such as Marie Claire, with a greater focus on local businesses, news and events. We are of course extremely aware and engaged with the digital marketplace and believe that both formats offer options commercially and editorially.
9
Q - Generation Z claim to obtain much of their news, images and articles, be they fashion based or otherwise, online or through Social Media sources. Do you think your target readership for Living Edge Magazine, of luxury consumers with a higher disposable income, prefer to read and indulge in premium printed magazines rather than gaining their news and reading articles online and via Social Media? A - I think they do both. We hear from both readers and advertisers that they take a physical, as well as intellectual, pleasure from flipping the pages of a magazine that is designed to reflect their own tastes and interests, with a specifically local bent. People are very aware that social media hasn’t the same values of trust and integrity that underpin printed journalism, which is bound by clear and enforceable rules. Both media types provide entertainment and both present advertising, but printed media is a simpler, more accessible medium to keep and return to as time and pressures allow. Q - With Social Media Journalism rapidly on the increase, and in some cases overtaking Print Journalism, due to news sharing being so instant, accessible and readily available to a wide readership online, has Living Edge Magazine had to adapt its practices at all in order to increase the Social Media and online presence of the magazine? A - Social media is something we are engaging with more, yes, and our online presence is being lifted by strategies built within the organisation. Q - Has Living Edge’s online presence grown in the past couple of years, and could you see Living Edge Magazine possibly going fully digital in the future, in order for the publication to deliver its aspirational lifestyle to the target readership? A - Yes, we have increased our presence online, but at this point I can’t see Living Edge moving solely to an online presence. Q - With Social Media allowing anyone to share news or their opinions, fashion based or otherwise, do you think the line between professional Journalism and personal self-expression online is becoming blurry? 10
A - I do. The rise of the blogger has made this very clear. Whereas in the past journalists – in all specialities – would have studied and trained and gained experience to give themselves a degree of authority, today anybody with a laptop and an opinion can present it to the world. I don’t think that this is necessarily a bad thing, but I do believe that audiences are still catching up with this concept and perhaps behind the curve a little – hence the rise in and power of ‘fake news.’ Q - Do you feel readers are more inclined to trust the information and images provided by respected publications, like Living Edge Magazine and others similar, which have better reputations rather than Blogs and Social Media Accounts online? A - I think that this might be something split by age and attitude. I believe that yes, we have an authority and a reputation earned over 25 years, but also that we know that people are easily swayed by the opinions of online influencers, who don’t truly acknowledge the degree of commercial content in their posts and their reliance on ‘gifts’ and paid-for posting.
Developing on from this interview, I also interviewed two Journalism students; Brett Herlingshaw, who studies Journalism at University of Chester, and Charlie Walden, who studies a Journalism Diploma at The Sheffield Collage, to understand their perspective on where they see the Future of Fashion Journalism and Journalism going. As both study Journalism, but at different levels, I wanted to find out what type of Journalism they study, how they feel about the new developments, and how they see the future of Journalism education changing. As a control, I asked both boys the same questions, so to directly compare their responses. The interviews went as follows: Q- As you’re studying Journalism at University/Collage, what type of journalistic content does your course cover? For example, what kind of topics do you cover, what type of projects do you complete, what skills do you learn and what kind of publications, either print or online, do you study? 11
B - We cover a variety of topics within the course itself. Specifically focusing on Specialist journalism, which is where we learn a multitude of skills in order to go out and secure interviews for features and profiles. We are taught skills in interviewing, writing, filming, editing. We mainly focus on looking at online publications for examples. C- My course covers all different types of journalism; sport, music, fashion and so on. For assignments and projects tasked we are given free reign on what topic we want to cover but it has to be local based so in my case: Sheffield. Q - Does your course cover more traditional forms of journalism and communication, or more forward thinking, contemporary, digital forms of journalistic communication?
B - My course for the main part is focused on the more contemporary forms of Journalism as that is where the industry is heading. We do occasionally do something around designing things for print, such as in an assignment last year when we had to design a newspaper. But our course focuses on the more modern style of journalism, encompassing lessons on digital journalism and some of the more traditional journalism styles. C - It covers both to be honest, developing sources, contacts, using social media and so on.
Q - How much do you study digital, Social Media journalism, and is this a platform you frequently use and consider on your course? B -We study digital journalism frequently, but the focus for our course is how to learn skills in terms of writing instead of finding out how we can get our pieces more visible on social media platforms. Honestly there hasn’t been a lot taught on social media thus far into my second year. C - Most days we study it, we are working off Twitter and Facebook most day looking what is happening in Sheffield news wise and looking for stories.
Q - There has been evidence that traditional print Journalism is on the decrease. My current research has informed me that Marie Claire Magazine are set to stop producing their print 12
magazine and are going fully digital as of November 2019, due to the level of print advertising decreasing by 25% in 2018, and down again by a further 30% in 2019. With this in mind, as a journalism student yourself, are you taught about the decline of print media and has this affected what you’re taught? B - We are taught more modern ideas of journalism, in terms of digital aspects that we are all needed to discover and the variety of skills that a journalist these days should have. This encompasses things like: Writing, social media, filming, editing and podcasting. We have been taught on the decline of print media but the focus of the course is on the future of journalism itself. C - Not as of yet as I’m only early into the course but I’m sure we will touch on it. However, that is a worrying decline Q - Do you feel that traditional print media journalism will continue to decrease at the rapid rate is it? B - Yes definitely, this is due to more demand for digital content and the rate that it can be produced and uploaded compared to print. Print is far behind in this regard, although there is still some profit in print journalism, it is very minimal. C - Yes in my opinion; people aren’t too bothered about reading a paper in this modern day they assume they can just get it all online.
Q - How do you feel the rise of Social Media as a journalistic platform due to the decline of print media will affect not just your future career as a journalist, but other aspiring journalists also? B - I believe it has positive and negative effects, in the positive category there is more chance for an aspiring journalist work to be seen and it is easier for contacts to be made through social platforms. The negative aspects mainly revolve around that although it is easier it is also harder to be noticed with so many aspiring journalists wanting to be heard. Platforms such as 13
social media make it harder for actual journalists to be heard, so overall, I would say it has its troubles. C - It will affect negatively in my opinion because it potentially also means less money going forward.
Q - With Social Media allowing anyone to share news, images, or their opinions, fashion based or otherwise, and online news outlets frequently reposting the same articles, do you think the line between professional, trained journalism and personal self-expression online is becoming blurry? And with so much readily available news online, do you feel that an element of truth is somewhat lost? B -Because everyone nowadays can have an opinion it becomes harder for facts and the truth to be heard in a sea of altering opinions. You can be competent in terms of journalistic skills without having studied journalism and still go on to become one using social media and blogging. Although a journalism course trains you to refine those skills and make contacts within the industry. Overall I believe an element of truth has been lost.
C - Yes. I think many people consider journalism on social media in today’s world as reporting something that has happened. For example, you’re at a crime scene and explain what has happened; anyone can do that whereas a journalism has to consider accuracy, privacy, etc.
From a slightly different angle, Cookies and Algorithms also will play a large part in the way we consume news in the future, be that news fashion based or otherwise. In a recent article by Phillip Smith, he discussed the idea of the future of Journalism and Fashion Journalism, being much more specific. His research suggested that a possibility for the future of Journalism involves “Micro News Organisations.” These news organisations would use analytics and cookie data provided by platforms such as Google, to specifically target news at readers, based on their previous searches, thus allowing news and images to be tailored to individuals,
14
the same way as brands tailor their adverts on social platforms. There are again many positives to this new development for the Future of Fashion Journalism. Firstly, Cookies and Algorithms will deliver more streamlined searches, news and images, and will therefore make the articles much more relevant to readers, as these technologies will understand user preferences and make recommendations for news based on these. Adding to this, in an article by Roman Kniahynyckyj for Business Twitter, he claimed that “According to Business Insider, by the year 2020, it is projected that 85% of customer interactions will happen without the need of a human”. These statistics therefore may demonstrate how successful these Cookie driven Micro News Organisations could be for the Future of Fashion Journalism, if used well and if they are accepted by readerships. However innovative this news sharing future may be, again this somewhat limits the range of news readers are being exposed to, and almost may blinker them to certain stories, fashion based or otherwise, if cookie technology is collecting the data and deciding what news stories people see. 52% of participants on the questionnaire, when asked the question “how far do you agree that data collecting Cookies and Algorithms affect our perception of news, fashion based or otherwise, and the type of articles, posts and adverts we are exposed to online?” agreed. Moreover, when asked to expand their answer, the general consensus was that these Micro News Organisations would be a good idea, however would limit our exposure to news. To expand on my interview with Brett and Charlie, I also questioned them about the up an coming use of Micro News Organisations. These responses went as follows: Q - Recent studies have suggested that 'Micro News Organisations' which target specific topics, readers and communities through user generated data and algorithms, (the same way that brands target their adverts online) may be the avenue Fashion Journalism is going down. Do you think this idea of micro news organisations could work and is this forward-thinking research something you cover within your course?
15
B - From the sound of this it seems like an interesting avenue in terms of getting the content matched to the person via data and algorithms. We have not covered this on my course, and I don’t think there is any plan to in the future. C -I think it is more forward thinking because the majority of people have a device and look online and that’s where you find adverts, I know most people glance at adverts they see online if not read them. Someone we have touched on but are going into detail on sooner.
Artificial Intelligence will also be a large part of the future of Fashion Journalism. In a report by Nicola Martin, she identified that there has been an algorithm created, that converts data into narrative text. A program called ‘Cyborg’ has been developed that helped journalists to convert financial data into news stories. Adding to this, Forbes have begun to use an AI called ‘Bertie,’ to assist journalists in creating templates for their stories, and first drafts, and The Washington Post has an AI program called ‘Heliograf’ that has helped to produce over 850 articles since 2016. Although at this current point AI is being used for more business type, numerical journalism, this system could stretch to being used in Fashion Journalism, and AI machines and algorithms could produce journalistic content for us, with data provided. In the same questionnaire, the question “could you see a future where AI systems take over journalism and produce content independently?” was asked, and 58% said maybe, but there would still be space for human journalists, whereas 17% said they couldn’t see this developing in the future. To conclude my interviews, and to help me to come to a final, defining point my essay and research, I asked both Kate Houghton, Brett and Charlie, how they feel the future of Fashion Journalism will manifest itself. B - It’s an interesting world opening up for journalists, there are so many more opportunities thanks to social media and the ability to get your content out there and become noticed. I think digital and social media have a positive future and print journalism not so much. Fashion 16
journalism I can’t comment on too much as I am not well informed enough on the subject, but I’m assuming thanks to the likes of Instagram and other social platforms it has a vibrant future in terms of synergy between the platforms. C -My overall opinion on fashion journalism at this current moment is that it’s in a good place. With all these exciting designer brands releasing bigger and better products, it is giving fashion journalists more to talk about. I think social media and digital journalism has a positive future for fashion because a lot of people shop online and read things online in this modern day, therefore read less print magazines, etc. In my opinion a more traditional form needs to stay but I don’t see it staying unfortunately. K - In terms of news journalism, I think the need for journalists driven by a desire to report on truth, reality and fact has never been greater. Social media is a minefield of opinion, fakery and fact-twisting and there needs to be a place people can go where news can be trusted. In terms of lifestyle journalism, the rise of the influencer in fashion and beauty is damaging to those industries, I believe, as paid-for content simply splinters the landscape, preventing true creativity and giving rise to further stratification of the brands through raising some to levels of reputation that they simply don’t deserve to achieve and pricing becomes a way to define status, rather than quality. As a local magazine, the news and articles that we choose to present are based upon careful consideration of what will be of concern to our readers, with the overriding objective of making the magazine – in its entirety – relevant and interesting to those that live within our distribution area. We have to create a platform that our advertisers want to feature in, but also that our readers want to read – it’s a virtuous circle. Personally, I love to sit and flick through magazines – pick up and put down, see big pictures and read interviews over a number of pages – and I don’t think I am alone. I don’t want to be bombarded with pop-ups, be repeatedly asked to accept cookies, have videos start to play just as I scroll to the next paragraph; it’s annoying and disruptive. I think that as we have rushed into social media, so will we begin to drift out and rediscover the joys of slower living again. At least, so I hope! 17
From the interview with Brett and Charlie, it is evident that both Journalism students, although they are in different levels and years in their education, still study traditional journalism, and only touch on Social Media Journalism in some cases. It is interesting however to read that they both study contemporary forms of Journalism, to prepare them on their course for the Decline of Print Media, and to almost future proof their careers. Moreover, it is clear that although there is a huge worry and uncertainty to the Future of Journalism and Fashion Journalism, both students are looking at the future opportunities of their career optimistically and with positivity, and that is something I will very much take with me in my career going forward into this exciting, innovative, ever developing space for the Future of Fashion Journalism. Moreover, from the very interesting and insightful interview with Kate Houghton, it is evident that although Living Edge Magazine does have a Social Media presence, because it is a printed luxury publication and targets a very specific readership of readers with a high disposable income, the magazine in print form sits in with their luxury lifestyle, and almost acts as a physical extension of their more luxury, socialite lifestyle, and the readers appreciate this print magazine more than gaining their news and images online. Overall, the Future of Fashion Journalism serves as a very exciting space. It is evident that Print Fashion Journalism is on the rapid decline and Editors and Journalism students themselves are aware of this and are preparing for this new future for the communication practise. Perhaps even in the next few years, Print Media, will maybe be non-existent if it keeps declining at the rapid rate it is at the present, due to this huge surge for Digital Communication. As discussed, Digital Journalism, in the form of Social Media, Blogging and Online article and image sharing, and Online Publications is rapidly evolving and very much being taken on by younger generations like Generation Z and Millennials, who have, on the whole, grown up digitally native, so welcome this shift to digital. To support this change to the Journalism Practise, Micro News Organisations, Podcasts, Closet Accounts, and Journalism Accounts providing fashion news and images to take the place of Printed Publications are 18
beginning to take over as contemporary forms of Journalism, and even though these spaces have their cons, including perhaps a lack of clarity and truth, a somewhat lack of demonstrated Journalistic Skill, and an overabundance of available Fashion information and images, the positive aspects outshine the things that need to be developed about these practises. In terms of Artificial Intelligence being on the near horizon for the Future of Fashion Journalism, it seems like, from the research collected, and from the first hand opinions of Kate, Brett and Charlie, and the primary questionnaire, there is still lots of technological work and development to be done on Artificial Intelligence being used in the Journalism Space, as well as moral questions to be considered about this practise, and the potential loss of human generated Journalism. From this research, I very much feel that I have identified a clear path for the Future of Fashion Journalism, and in turn, have been somewhat able to future proof my career in Journalism, by making myself aware of the new developments to the Fashion Journalism Space, and by identifying, analysing and reflecting upon where the Future of Fashion Journalism lies.
19
References Lyon.S – 20.10.19 – “The Evolution of Fashion Journalism from Print to Digital” – FG Magazine – Retrieved from: https://thefashionglobe.com/the-evolution-of-fashion-journalism Smith.P – 2.4.19 – “The Future of Journalism is Tiny, Targeted and Timely” – Medium – Retrieved from: https://medium.com/s/story/microbranding-local-journalism Westbrook.I – 10.9.19 – “Marie Claire to stop producing UK printing magazine in November” – BBC News – Retrieved from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49651603 Martin.N – 8.2.2.19 – “Did A Robot Write This? How AI Is Impacting Journalism” – Forbes – Retrieved from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicolemartin1/2019/02/08/did-a-robot-write-thishow-ai-is-impacting-journalism/#610f8f157795 George.T – 12.12.18 – “Newsrooms must learn how to use AI: Trust in Journalism is at steak” – Journalism.co.uk – Retrieved from: https://www.journalism.co.uk/news/lessons-learned-inthe-last-four-years-of-using-artificial-intelligence-at-the-associated-press/s2/a731760/ Lorenz.T – 10.10.19 – “Are Closet Accounts the Future of Fashion Journalism?” – The New York Times – Retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/10/style/closet-accountsinstagram.html Wells.M – 28.3.11 – “How Live Blogging has transformed journalism” – The Guardian – Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/mar/28/live-blogging-transformsjournalism Sweney.M – 2.3.18 – “NME’s demise shows pressure on consumer magazines” – The Guardian – Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2018/mar/12/nme-voguedeath-print-magazines The Moon Unit – 30.10.19 – “How One Instagram Account turned fashion upside down” – Retrieved from: https://shots.net/news/view/how-one-instagram-account-turned-fashionupside-down 23.1.19 – “Five things everyone needs to know about the future of journalism” – World Economic Forum – Retrieved from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/01/five-thingseverybody-needs-to-know-about-the-future-of-journalism/ Jensen. C - 22.6.17 – “A sober look at Artificial Intelligence in journalism from the GEN Summit” – Retrieved from - https://medium.com/global-editors-network/a-sober-look-atartificial-intelligence-in-journalism-from-the-gen-summit-8df3f04187df Carufel. R – 12.11.18 – “Gen Z’s preference for “sensory journalism” reflects new trend in news consumption” – Retrieved from - https://www.agilitypr.com/pr-news/public-relations/genzs-preference-for-sensory-journalism-reflects-new-trend-in-news-consumption/ Kalogeropoulos. A – “How Younger Generations Consume News Differently” – Retrieved from http://www.digitalnewsreport.org/survey/2019/how-younger-generations-consume-newsdifferently/ Backlund H. – 18.7.19 – “I s You r Jou rna l ism a Luxu ry o r Nec essi ty? ” Re t riev ed f r om h ttps : / /www .c i tybu reau .o rg /no tebook /2019 /7 /17 /j our nal ism - is -a l ux u ry -in fo rma t ion - is- a-n ecessi ty Pen land .J – 6 .11 .19 – “ Browser Cookies: What Are They & Why Should You Care?” – Retrieved from - https://www.whoishostingthis.com/resources/cookies-guide/ 20
9.4.19 – “Will AI Save Journalism — or https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/ai-in-journalism/
Kill
It?”
–
Retrieved
from
-
Kiger.P – 27.7.17 – “News Organizations Are Using Artificial Intelligence to Generate Data-driven Articles” – Retrieved from - https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/future-tech/automatedjournalism-artificial-intelligence-algorithms-write-articles.htm 2.10.19 – “Sponsored content: Using AI to break news faster” – Retrieved from https://www.journalism.co.uk/news/sponsored-content-using-ai-to-break-newsfaster/s2/a745373/ Greenslade. R – 3.2.19 – “Journalism is foundering, but is there a light at the end of the tunnel?” – Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/media/commentisfree/2019/feb/03/digital-innovators-futurefunding-newspapers Kniahynyckyj.R – “The Pros and Cons of AI in Marketing” – Retrieved from https://business.twitter.com/en/blog/The-pros-cons-AI-in-marketing.html Cellan Jones.R – 26.1.15 – “Future of News: Seven insane ways tech will change news” – Retrieved from - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-30897482 Lestieux. K – 3.2.19 – “How digital journalism has affected traditional journalism” – Retrieved from - https://blogs.mediapart.fr/kimberley-lestieux/blog/030219/how-digital-journalism-hasaffected-traditional-journalism
21
Bibliography “AI to Bypass Creativity. Will Robots Replace Journalists? (The Answer Is “Yes”)” – Academic Paper by Andrey Miroshnichenko
- York & Ryerson Joint Graduate Program in
Communication & Culture, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada Received: 1 July 2018 / Accepted: 21 July 2018 / Published: 23 July 2018
Image References for Social Media Campaign and Photobook – All secondary images: Gallery of Fashion images – Retrieved from – “Gallery of Fashion” – from The British Library Archives - https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/gallery-of-fashion Robin Givhan Black and White image – From “System Magazine – Retrieved from http://system-magazine.com/issue9/robin-givhan/ Marie Claire Images x2 – From “BBC https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49651603
News”
–
Retrieved
from
-
News Evolution or Revolution Image – Front cover of book “News Evolution or Revolution?: The Future of Print Journalism in the Digital Age (Mass Communication and Journalism)” By Andrea Miller (PhD, University of Missouri-Columbia) – retrieved from https://www.amazon.com/News-Evolution-Revolution-JournalismCommunication/dp/1433123169 Instagram Closet Account Image – From “Front Row Edit “ – Retrieved from https://www.frontrowedit.co.uk/celebrity-fashion-accounts-following-instagram/ Diet Prada Image – Retrieved from - https://www.partynepal.com/detail/diet-prada-calling-outthe-fashion-industrys-copycat-culture Changed Me Forever quote – By Taylor Mayes Via Pintrest – Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/366621225915808239/ Google Data Image – From “HD Wallpapers” “https://livewallpaperswide.com/technology/red-matrix-34843
–
retrieved
from
Robot hand image – from “The Conversation” – Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/artificial-intelligence-enhanced-journalism-offers-a-glimpse-ofthe-future-of-the-knowledge-economy-117728
22
Appendices A.) Full interview with Kate Houghton from Living Edge Luxury Magazine: Q- There has been evidence that traditional print Journalism is on the decrease. My current research has informed me that Marie Claire Magazine are set to stop producing their print magazine and are going fully digital as of November 2019, due to the level of print advertising decreasing by 30% in 2019. With this in mind, has the shift to a more digital space for Journalism effected your premium monthly printed publication at all, and do you think that the printed Living Edge Magazine will be affected by this change in the future? A- We haven’t had this experience to this extent, no. We are operating in a different space to the huge magazines such as Marie Claire, with a greater focus on local businesses, news and events. We are of course extremely aware and engaged with the digital marketplace and believe that both formats offer options commercially and editorially. Q - Generation Z claim to obtain much of their news, images and articles, be they fashion based or otherwise, online or through Social Media sources. Do you think your target readership for Living Edge Magazine, of luxury consumers with a higher disposable income, prefer to read and indulge in premium printed magazines rather than gaining their news and reading articles online and via Social Media? A - I think they do both. We hear from both readers and advertisers that they take a physical, as well as intellectual, pleasure from flipping the pages of a magazine that is designed to reflect their own tastes and interests, with a specifically local bent. People are very aware that social media hasn’t the same values of trust and integrity that underpin printed journalism, which is bound by clear and enforceable rules. Both media types provide entertainment and both present advertising, but printed media is a simpler, more accessible medium to keep and return to as time and pressures allow. Q - With Social Media Journalism rapidly on the increase, and in some cases overtaking Print Journalism, due to news sharing being so instant, accessible and readily available to a wide readership online, has Living Edge Magazine had to adapt its practices at all in order to increase the Social Media and online presence of the magazine? A - Social media is something we are engaging with more, yes, and our online presence is being lifted by strategies built within the organisation. Q - Has Living Edge’s online presence grown in the past couple of years, and could you see Living Edge Magazine possibly going fully digital in the future, in order for the publication to deliver its aspirational lifestyle to the target readership? A - Yes, we have increased our presence online, but at this point I can’t see Living Edge moving solely to an online presence. Q - With Social Media allowing anyone to share news or their opinions, fashion based or otherwise, do you think the line between professional Journalism and personal self-expression online is becoming blurry? A - I do. The rise of the blogger has made this very clear. Whereas in the past journalists – in all specialities – would have studied and trained and gained experience to give themselves a degree of authority, today anybody with a laptop and an opinion can present it to the world. I don’t think that this is necessarily a bad thing, but I do believe that audiences are still catching 23
up with this concept and perhaps behind the curve a little – hence the rise in and power of ‘fake news.’ Q - Do you feel readers are more inclined to trust the information and images provided by respected publications, like Living Edge Magazine and others similar, which have better reputations rather than Blogs and Social Media Accounts online? A - I think that this might be something split by age and attitude. I believe that yes, we have an authority and a reputation earned over 25 years, but also that we know that people are easily swayed by the opinions of online influencers, who don’t truly acknowledge the degree of commercial content in their posts and their reliance on ‘gifts’ and paid-for posting. Q - There is evidence that Artificial Intelligence has started to be used to assist journalists. A program called ‘Cyborg’ has been developed that helped journalists to convert financial data into news stories and Forbes have begun to use an AI called ‘Bertie,’ to assist journalists in creating templates for their stories, and first drafts. What is your personal opinion on Artificial Intelligence being used to assist journalists, and could you see a future where AI takes over human generated journalism? A- I’m sorry, I am not at all familiar with these programmes, so can’t speak for these specifically, but I think it would be a great shame should human input be less important – and I can’t see how it would be of use in true journalism, where research, knowledge and the ability to report facts are vital. It would homogenise content, or – worse – create a series of Fox News style streams of ‘news’ twisted to support the aims of those who are paying for it. Q - As an Editor, Writer and Copywriter, what is your overall opinion on the Future of Journalism? How do you feel about the change to the Journalism space, and what kind of direction do you see the future of Living Edge Magazine and Journalism in general going in? A - In terms of news journalism, I think the need for journalists driven by a desire to report on truth, reality and fact has never been greater. Social media is a minefield of opinion, fakery and fact-twisting and there needs to be a place people can go where news can be trusted. In terms of lifestyle journalism, the rise of the influencer in fashion and beauty is damaging to those industries, I believe, as paid-for content simply splinters the landscape, preventing true creativity and giving rise to further stratification of the brands through raising some to levels of reputation that they simply don’t deserve to achieve and pricing becomes a way to define status, rather than quality. As a local magazine, the news and articles that we choose to present are based upon careful consideration of what will be of concern to our readers, with the overriding objective of making the magazine – in its entirety – relevant and interesting to those that live within our distribution area. We have to create a platform that our advertisers want to feature in, but also that our readers want to read – it’s a virtuous circle. Personally, I love to sit and flick through magazines – pick up and put down, see big pictures and read interviews over a number of pages – and I don’t think I am alone. I don’t want to be bombarded with pop-ups, be repeatedly asked to accept cookies, have videos start to play just as I scroll to the next paragraph; it’s annoying and disruptive. I think that as we have rushed into social media, so will we begin to drift out and rediscover the joys of slower living again. At least, so I hope!
24
B.) Full interview with Brett Herlingshaw and Charlie Walden Q- As you’re studying Journalism at University/Collage, what type of journalistic content does your course cover? For example, what kind of topics do you cover, what type of projects do you complete, what skills do you learn and what kind of publications, either print or online, do you study? B - We cover a variety of topics within the course itself. Specifically focusing on Specialist journalism, which is where we learn a multitude of skills in order to go out and secure interviews for features and profiles. We are taught skills in interviewing, writing, filming, editing. We mainly focus on looking at online publications for examples. C- My course covers all different types of journalism; sport, music, fashion and so on. For assignments and projects tasked we are given free reign on what topic we want to cover but it has to be local based so in my case: Sheffield. Q - Does your course cover more traditional forms of journalism and communication, or more forward thinking, contemporary, digital forms of journalistic communication?
B - My course for the main part is focused on the more contemporary forms of Journalism as that is where the industry is heading. We do occasionally do something around designing things for print, such as in an assignment last year when we had to design a newspaper. But our course focuses on the more modern style of journalism, encompassing lessons on digital journalism and some of the more traditional journalism styles. C - It covers both to be honest, developing sources, contacts, using social media and so on.
Q - How much do you study digital, Social Media journalism, and is this a platform you frequently use and consider on your course?
B -We study digital journalism frequently, but the focus for our course is how to learn skills in terms of writing instead of finding out how we can get our pieces more visible on social media platforms. Honestly there hasn’t been a lot taught on social media thus far into my second year. C - Most days we study it, we are working off Twitter and Facebook most day looking what is happening in Sheffield news wise and looking for stories.
Q - There has been evidence that traditional print Journalism is on the decrease. My current research has informed me that Marie Claire Magazine are set to stop producing their print magazine and are going fully digital as of November 2019, due to the level of print advertising decreasing by 25% in 2018, and down again by a further 30% in 2019. With this in mind, as a journalism student yourself, are you taught about the decline of print media and has this affected what you’re taught?
B - We are taught more modern ideas of journalism, in terms of digital aspects that we are all needed to discover and the variety of skills that a journalist these days should have. This encompasses things like: Writing, social media, filming, editing and podcasting. We have been taught on the decline of print media but the focus of the course is on the future of journalism itself. C - Not as of yet as I’m only early into the course but I’m sure we will touch on it. However, that is a worrying decline
25
Q - Do you feel that traditional print media journalism will continue to decrease at the rapid rate is it? B - Yes definitely, this is due to more demand for digital content and the rate that it can be produced and uploaded compared to print. Print is far behind in this regard, although there is still some profit in print journalism, it is very minimal. C - Yes in my opinion; people aren’t too bothered about reading a paper in this modern day they assume they can just get it all online.
Q - How do you feel the rise of Social Media as a journalistic platform due to the decline of
print media will affect not just your future career as a journalist, but other aspiring journalists also? B - I believe it has positive and negative effects, in the positive category there is more chance for an aspiring journalist work to be seen and it is easier for contacts to be made through social platforms. The negative aspects mainly revolve around that although it is easier it is also harder to be noticed with so many aspiring journalists wanting to be heard. Platforms such as social media make it harder for actual journalists to be heard, so overall I would say it has its troubles. C - It will affect negatively in my opinion because it potentially also means less money going forward.
Q - With Social Media allowing anyone to share news, images, or their opinions, fashion based or otherwise, and online news outlets frequently reposting the same articles, do you think the line between professional, trained journalism and personal self-expression online is becoming blurry? And with so much readily available news online, do you feel that an element of truth is somewhat lost?
B -Because everyone nowadays can have an opinion it becomes harder for facts and the truth to be heard in a sea of altering opinions. You can be competent in terms of journalistic skills without having studied journalism and still go on to become one using social media and blogging. Although a journalism course trains you to refine those skills and make contacts within the industry. Overall I believe an element of truth has been lost.
C - Yes. I think many people consider journalism on social media in today’s world as reporting
something that has happened. For example, you’re at a crime scene and explain what has happened; anyone can do that whereas a journalism has to consider accuracy, privacy, etc.
Q - Recent studies have suggested that 'Micro News Organisations' which target specific topics, readers and communities through user generated data and algorithms, (the same way that brands target their adverts online) may be the avenue Fashion Journalism is going down. Do you think this idea of micro news organisations could work and is this forward-thinking research something you cover within your course? B - From the sound of this it seems like an interesting avenue in terms of getting the content matched to the person via data and algorithms. We have not covered this on my course, and I don’t think there is any plan to in the future. C -I think it is more forward thinking because the majority of people have a device and look online and that’s where you find adverts, I know most people glance at adverts they see online if not read them. Someone we have touched on but are going into detail on sooner. 26
Q - As a journalism student yourself, what is your overall opinion on the future of Journalism and Fashion Journalism? For example, does the new space for Journalism excite you, do you think that digital and social media journalism has a positive future, or do you think traditional journalism needs to stay? B - It’s an interesting world opening up for journalists, there are so many more opportunities thanks to social media and the ability to get your content out there and become noticed. I think digital and social media have a positive future and print journalism not so much. Fashion journalism I can’t comment on too much as I am not well informed enough on the subject, but I’m assuming thanks to the likes of Instagram and other social platforms it has a vibrant future in terms of synergy between the platforms. C -My overall opinion on fashion journalism at this current moment is that it’s in a good place. With all these exciting designer brands releasing bigger and better products, it is giving fashion journalists more to talk about. I think social media and digital journalism has a positive future for fashion because a lot of people shop online and read things online in this modern day, therefore read less print magazines, etc. In my opinion a more traditional form needs to stay but I don’t see it staying unfortunately.
C.) Full public questionnaire carried via Google Forms – Questions and Responses
27
28