Journalism outsourcing?

By: Taylor Browning

I never thought I would see the words 'journalism' and 'outsourcing' used together in a sentence. How is it possible to 'outsource' reporting and printing the news for a newspaper?

James Macpherson, creator of the Pasadena Now newspaper, fired his staff of reporters and hired people in India, over the Craigslist Website, to provide him with the news. Instead of paying a weekly salary, Macpherson pays for his news by the story which pays $7.50 for a thousand words.

Macpherson admits that news gets caught up in mistranslation as well as his sources, G. Sreejayanthi, claiming “I try to do my best, which need not necessarily be correct always.”

I cannot help but think about the terrible direction this would head in if larger newspapers attempted to 'outsource' for their news. Who knows, newspapers such as The New York Times could eventually become the 'Wikipedia' of newspaper journalism, with everyone reporting what they know without checking the facts.