Gone are the glorious days of independent journalism?

It has been a rather sad year for proud, independent news agencies who have been around for more than a century. Reuters and Dow Jones, the two well respected companies in the editorial world, have fallen into the hand of media conglomerate, namely Thomason financials and News Group. Both Reuters and Dow Jones used to be an icon in their industry, and they partly formed and revolutionized the modern journalism and news industry.

Money talks these days, and if someone got a deep pocket, that certainly wins a smile and nod from profit hunger shareholders. It was only a matter of time really for these companies to be acquired by bigger media companies. Their operating performance in the past ten years haven’t been satisfying to the shareholders, and both struggling to compete with new rivals. They made themselves a natural and easy target for the conglomerate looking to expand their business and presence.

Big fish gets all, and their ambition and interest will be the commercial value of the business. Editorial independence will probably be kept as long as they are not in conflict with their commercial interest and profit goals. News group is well known for its rather cosy relationships with governments so that they get green lights to run business in countries with strict media censorship.

The truth is though, there are many journalists out there filming and reporting from the disaster hit area and battle fields and money is the last thing they want to think of – who would if you had to risk your lives? The devotion comes from a strong belief and faith in the integrity and independence of journalism.

I see shadows start to emerge under the two bright stars in the news industry, they will still shine but the magic glow around them is fading. There is something money can’t buy.