RSC Partners, Inc.

This afternoon, I attended a panel at the University of Southern California asking the question, “Have Blogs Replaced Newspapers and Should We Care?” The speakers were Kevin Roderick of LA Observed, Kevin Drum of Political Animal and Ana Marie Cox, ex of Wonkette.

Chatting it up with the two Kevins beforehand, I said that I thought it was really a silly question to ask. Blogs do not aspire to replace newspapers, they add to the conversation.

What came out during the discussion in Doheny Library was that there is an Interdependence between all forms of media–print, broadcast and online media–that if you removed one of the parts would totally change the system. Were there no print newspapers, Roderick noted, something would have to fill the void.

One major newspaper understand this interdependence, and it is the Washington Post. On each of the paper’s articles, they use Technorati to link back to the most recent blog posts linking to that article. This encourages bloggers to link to their versions of a story by creating a win-win scenario for both blogger and paper publisher.

So yes we should care about newspapers. Major daily newspapers set the agenda for reporters and assignment editors on radio, television and online media–but blogs can report more quickly and the collective intelligence of the blogosphere serves to add specific knowledge that cannot be expected of a beat reporter. Blogs can also serve as an outlet to provide news to smaller communities where no local media exists or as an outlet for persons or companies who do not get a fair shake from their local mainstream media outlets. This interdependence is why RSC Partners sees a role for outreach to New Media as a supplement to traditional public relations campaigns–to give voice to those who would otherwise not be heard.