“Rock Journalism is people who can’t write interviewing people who can’t talk for people who can’t read” – Frank Zappa

… well, someone’s gotta cater for the needs of the perceivably deranged … and who better than the deranged themselves.

Although my knowledge and interest in rock is a bit limited, I’ve always admired and respected these artists for their boldness in not having to follow the socially correct bunch, often expressing a part of society that people don’t really want expressed. Now- imagine the rock journalist’s tasks, trying to make sense of the nonsensical and then relaying that information to gain attention…. for a subject, a person or simply an idea.

We live in a world where the problem is not the lack of information, but the abundance of it. Journalists have the task of gaining people’s attention around relevant information, finding meaning amidst the info jungle. And now, with blogging and new age media platforms, even Joe Soap can profess to be a journalist.

So- just about anybody can write, share and express… but can you gain people’s attention? To my mind, and no matter what the beat, that is the mark of a truly successful journalist.


(Pic: http://www.magazine.ucla.edu/depts/lifesigns/pay-attention.jpg)