bakedjake - 2:20 pm on Oct 7, 2008 (gmt 0)

In fact, major newspapers are folding, while others are cutting staff, or on the financial brink.

Is that a business model problem or a trust problem? I think a large part of the reason that major newspapers are folding is because major streams of revenue are being killed by the Internet. Classifieds, job postings, etc. That has nothing to do with the accuracy of reporting or the trust (or lack thereof) of the editorial content of the paper.

Then again, perhaps trust (or lack thereof) is indeed killing readership and therefore hurting the effectiveness of their advertising offerings.

I'm having a hard time coming to terms with the lack of interest in objective news reporting. I understand that op-ed reporting and pundits definitely get eyeballs, which will drive advertising dollars.

UGC, and all the grassroots bloggers and internet media are excellent, as they're 'by the people'. Commercial interests mean little and thus don't necessarily bias much in that sphere.

Really? There is advertising on The Huffington Post and The Drudge Report. Do you think that the commercial interest isn't there?

It may be more correct to say that new sources on the internet are pre-biased when deployed, and advertisers may want to reach those biased audiences.