What's the cost of digital disruption?
We’re kicking off 2021 with a biggie
There’s a lot going on in the digital media space in Australia right now. Most notably, the attempt to harness more revenue for news organisations by getting Google and Facebook to commit to a mandatory media bargaining code.
Last year the Federal Government commissioned an independent review of the Australian media sector, in part because it was “seeking expert advice on the range of media business models that have been adopted in overseas markets, and what measures have been put in place, or are being considered, to support media providers to transition to a more sustainable footing.”
One of those experts is Professor Amanda Lotz. She has examined how internet communication technologies have disrupted the print media industry and why funding solutions are so elusive.
She will present her research at the first Hacks/Hackers Brisbane event for 2021, which we’re co-hosting with QUT’s Digital Media Research Centre.
If you wish to attend this IRL, please leave your details here for COVID reporting purposes.
The event will be live streamed, so if you’d like access to that link, please RSVP via our Meet-Up page.
Event details
Date: Wednesday, February 17
Where: QUT Kelvin Grove, room W201
Times:
5:00pm - IRL attendees arrive
5:25pm - Zoom session opens for virtual attendees
5:30pm - Professor Amanda Lotz presentation and Q&A
6:30pm - Conclude event and move to post-event venue (for IRLers)
ICYMI
🎧 Like Brisbane (modern) history and independent media? 4ZZZ’s podcast From A To Triple Zed is for you.
💻 Will Google remove search from Australia over the media bargaining code? Here are some alternatives if they do.
🗞️ “But the code is unlikely to do much to fix the crisis faced by journalism in the internet age. It isn’t even a band-aid on the problem.” - Professor Amanda Lotz in this Conversation piece.
🍪 Apparently, “Oreo” is a very common crossword answer in the US, as this fun little visualisation explains.
🥀 Sometimes all the data is too much to comprehend the grief, the human emotion. Can giving up some precision make way for empathy?
👥 Are you a journalist working in the product space? This networking event might be for you. Kim Bode, a senior product manager at the LA Times, will be speaking.
Other bits
Don't forget we have a website where you can find out about speaking at, or pitching ideas for, a Hacks/Hackers Brisbane event.
About us
Hacks/Hackers is an international grassroots journalism organisation with dozens of chapters and thousands of members across four continents. Our mission is to create a network of journalists (“hacks”) and technologists (“hackers”) who rethink the future of news and information.
Hacks/Hackers Brisbane is run by Quants & Quills.