"O jornal essencial" ou o essencial do jornal Vale a pena ler o texto "The Essential Newspaper", do provedor do Washington Post (acesso com pré-inscrição gratuita). Excertos: "Under sustained assault from cable television, the Internet, all-news radio and lifestyles so cram-packed they leave little time for the daily paper, the industry is struggling to remake itself. . . . The changes come as circulation totals have eroded steadily for nearly two decades and as newspapers no longer play the central role in daily life they once did" (cit. repórter Frank Ahrens) (...) "I worry about the self-inflicted wounds that diminish the trust that should exist between newspapers (and television news networks) and the public, and about the increasing numbers who are not reading newspapers at all. Some of this is because newspapers are bulky things that a lot of people don't have time for and because, increasingly, people glance at them online. But this decline probably also says a lot about newspapers not being sufficiently compelling in the day-to-day lives of readers" (...) "The challenges that editors and publishers face today are tough, and smart people here and elsewhere are seeking to set the right course. Papers need to be easier to navigate and stories need to be told more concisely. But I don't think today's challenges will be met by new layouts or other superficial changes. My vote goes for more hard news, especially on Page One, more of the context that newspapers can so well provide, more probing of government and institutions at all levels, and more journalism that is unflinching yet beyond reproach -- in other words, trustworthy".