Digital Disruption and the Myth of Mainstream Media: CEO of Fortune Media Alan Murray

In talking about the news today, it’s tempting to focus on the bad actors, the amplifiers of nonsense and the peddlers of outrage. It’s worth remembering, though, they’re not the only players. There are journalists who adhere to standards and have managed to thrive despite the seismic disruption of the industry. Today’s guest is one of those. 

Alan Murray, the CEO of Fortune media, was a long-time Washington columnist for the Wall Street Journal before becoming editor and eventually CEO of Fortune, one of the most storied brands in business journalism. But Fortune, too, has had its share of disruption. Its former corporate owner, Time Inc., once one of the world’s richest media companies, collapsed under the weight of digital competition; Fortune is now owned by a foreign billionaire, and its success in recent years has hinged on multiple lines of business, like events, not on old-fashioned reporting and writing.

Alan and Eric discuss the economic changes that bedevil the news industry and what they mean to society; we talk about media bias and the myth of the mainstream media; the critical need for news literacy; and democracy’s enduring reliance on quality journalism.


Topics

00:00
Introduction and Background
01:06
Early Start in Journalism
02:25
Challenges in the Media Industry
08:29
Changes in Media Consumption
11:53
Impact of Media on Society
15:40
The Myth of Mainstream Media
17:15
Media Bias and Business Reporting
20:37
The Role of Media Literacy
25:43
Regulation and Media Responsibility
27:09
Social Media and Journalistic Standards
31:41
Future Plans and the Need for Quality Journalism
44:38
The Importance of Business Reporting
57:12
Stepping Down as CEO and Future Endeavors
58:00
Building Trust and Rapport
Conclusion

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Produced by Tom Platts at Sound Sapien
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