Carnegie Mellon University
February 02, 2012

Media Advisory: Prominent Pittsburgh Journalists To Discuss How New Media Is Changing the Aesthetics of News

Contact: Shilo Rea / 412-268-6094 / shilo@cmu.edu

Event: How are innovations like the iPad and smartphone, and platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr affecting the "art" of the news industry?

Carnegie Mellon University's Center for the Arts in Society (CAS), a research center within the Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences and College of Fine Arts that investigates the role of arts in societies, is hosting six prominent members of the Pittsburgh media to discuss how technology and social media are changing the aesthetics of news. Topics will include how their roles have evolved due to technology innovations, what the changes mean for consumers of news and where the media industry is headed next. The panelists are:


This event is part of the recently launched CAS Media Initiative to explore the role that new media — digital, networked, computer-mediated and social media — now play in social life, cultural politics and political mobilizations. Art Professor James Duesing and Associate English Professor Kathy M. Newman are leading the initiative, which will support three academic projects as well as sponsor events on related media issues.

"New media forms have been devastating for the economic subscription model on which the print news industry was based," Newman said. "Thousands of journalists have lost their jobs and hundreds of papers have shuttered their doors forever. But what about the aesthetics of the news today? How are new media changing the form — and even the artistry — of the craft? And what do industry insiders see happening on the horizon?"

"New Media/News Media: How New Media Is Changing The Aesthetics of News" is free and open to the public.

When: 4:45 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 15

Where: Steinberg Auditorium, Baker Hall A53, Carnegie Mellon University

Hashtag for Event: #CMUmedia

Related: CMU's Center for the Arts in Society Launches New Media Initiative | Q&A with CAS Director Paul Eiss

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