The Justice

Media Credit: Julian Agin-Liebes Peter Osnos '64, talks at the "How Technology and Commerce Are Changing Journalism" event. Profs. Maura Jane Farrelly (AMST) and Eileen McNamara (AMST) also spoke.

When Peter Osnos '64 asked a roomful of Brandeis students how many read daily newspapers, almost everyone raised their hand. But after a student prompted Osnos to exclude digital news from his question, almost every hand went down.

"Every one of you in this room is the editor in chief of your own information system," Osnos said. "It's a huge responsibility that people haven't yet completely absorbed."

Osnos, who co-founded the publishing house Public Affairs Books 12 years ago after a long career as a national and foreign correspondent at the Washington Post. He was a guest speaker at the "How Technology and Commerce Are Changing Journalism" talk on Thursday, Jan. 29. Profs. Maura Jane Farrelly (AMST) and Eileen McNamara (AMST) also spoke at the event, which was co-sponsored by the Journalism Program and the Hiatt Career Center.

Osnos spoke of technology's effect on journalism and why he thinks the industry will survive even though it suffers financially.

Osnos launched his journalistic career writing for the Justice while he was a Brandeis student. After graduating from the Columbia School of Journalism, he worked for the Washington Post for 18 years, where he covered the Vietnam War and the Cold War. Osnos' background in journalism led him to discover his interest in publishing, and he served as a senior editor of Random House publishing after leaving the Washington Post

"People ask me, 'Why the hell did you do that?'" Osnos said of his decision to leave the Post for Random House. "Answer is, I don't know."

Currently a senior editor at Public Affairs Books, Osnos said that the publishing company is neither big nor lavish butit is effective. In particular, working in the publishing business has taught him about the economics of journalism.

He discussed the impact of digital media on consumer behavior and subsequent cash flow, particularly the reality that journalists aren't the sole gatekeepers to news information anymore.

Continued...

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