The Future of Journalism: What Does the Next Generation Think?

Students weigh in on what reporting could (and should) look like

By Jillian Manning | March 15, 2025

Journalism is at an inflection point in the 21st century. Local newspapers are closing at a rate of 2.5 per week. News deserts are popping up in towns and counties across the nation. Social media is driving misinformation. Reporters are leaving once-revered papers like The Washington Post to start new, independent news efforts online. 

Where is journalism heading? What should be preserved and what needs to adapt? What role will reporters play five, 10, or 50 years from now? 

With the exception of our usual columns and special sections like the Top 10 or the crossword, this entire issue has been written by students in northern Michigan. Here’s what more than 30 students from North Ed Career Tech Center, Traverse City Central High School, and Interlochen Arts Academy had to say about the future of journalism.

Speaking Truth to Power

“Journalism should be fearless and uncensored, focused on truth over comfort—protecting facts instead of feelings.” – Nyah

“Journalism (generally) is and always should be a source that delivers the absolute truth to the general public, and should be the catalyst for others to make their own opinions.” – Kaihe

“The future will blow up the amount of news we take in, almost destroying the ability for people to easily find the truth. We should have less news, but more accurate news. Quality over quantity.” – Joshuah V.

“Journalism should be something with 100 percent freedom of speech with no punishment or judgement whatsoever.” – Jordan T.

“I think that the field of journalism, though it is constantly changing in its medium, will continue to carry the same core ideals and values that it has carried since the formation of the United States of America. Journalism is vital in maintaining an informed public, and though it will likely become social media based, it should always work to uncover deceit and to illuminate strife.” – Bridget B.

“The future of journalism should move beyond the illusion of neutrality, embracing its role as a historical record and an influence over it. Journalists might recognize their work as an act of world-making, where transparency about biases and the structures they serve becomes more valuable than the pretense of having none at all.” – Alice S. 

Avoiding Bias & Misinformation

“I think that with the amount of things happening in the world right now, paired with the amount of misinformation being spread, we should see an increase in unbiased, fact-based journalism.” – Chloe

“Journalism should be unbiased, free, accessible reporting with sources available for review and should not cater to one specific demographic.” – Sam

“Journalism should be completely facts and not opinions leaning one way or another, or if there is an opinion it should be stated as such. We should see both sides represented better.” – Annabelle

“Journalism should be improving in the future as in having no bias and the correct facts, but it seems that there are many sources that cater to people’s ideas, and whether those ideas are harmful or not doesn’t seem to matter, as long as these sources are being funded.” – Aiden

“There should be a larger focus on honesty compared to how it is as of now.” – Kaleb L.

“A blossoming community where diligence and facts prevail over fake news or exaggerations.” – Finn K. 

“I think that journalism has become this really convoluted and political field. I think we should go back to reporting facts, unless it’s an opinion article. Especially with the internet and social media becoming more popular, it's a lot easier for people to come across biased pieces of media that may have misinformation.” – Parker Z.

“Using the critical thinking skills we’ve learned to be able to decipher fake or poor journalism from real, we can filter the good sources.” – Jade M.

“Journalism on a larger scale should be fair to people, and should refrain from generalizing certain situations, as that creates ignorance and finger-pointing. Stories should definitely refrain from exaggeration (by giving factual information) and giving commentary only in areas labeled as so. Journalists should be respectful, patient, and human. … Balanced bias would be good, too.” – Morgan H.

Standing Strong Against Outside Influences

“As a fourth estate, journalism should be outside the influence of any object or institution, it should pursue the truth beyond all other things.” – Sydney

“I’m worried about corrupt corporations/politicians infiltrating our news stations more than they already do. If they got paid enough, would they say/advertise anything on the news without question?” – Kacie

“Unfortunately, I can see journalism catering towards corporations and elites rather than the people due to the increasing amount of corruption in our government becoming a cultural norm.” – Eily

“In my opinion, journalism should be uninfluenced by the money of people in power.” – Alex 

“It seems that, going forward, journalists are going to face more and more pressure regarding what they should be writing; however, should journalists lose their freedom, it will be easier for people with power to control the worldviews of those who consume the news.” – Lola

“I feel that the field of journalism could become a key component in how society will continue to function. It should at least clarify what new government policies will do and simplify the terms they are written in so that the general public can understand what policies are going into effect. I worry that it could be threatened or jeopardized by policies or politicians that begin to take power.” – Sean Humphrey 

Changing with the Times

“Local journalism will slowly die; there will be a lot of big news outlets and mainly two different sides. If we try to support these local news outlets, we can save them because I believe they are essential to journalism.” – Elijah I.

“AI technology will greatly impact journalism in the future and change it in both negative and positive ways. There could be a rise in misinformation, ‘filter bubbles,’ and the loss of jobs and the human touch if we over rely on AI models in journalism.” – Evan W.

“I think that journalism could fully shift to being only online because most people are chronically online. News should be unbiased and the full truth.” – Hunter 

“The next generations seem to rely heavily on social media to get their ‘news’ without much for fact-checking. I feel that having more accredited news sources on those platforms could spark the next generations to pay more attention. Having links to read full articles attached to those short news clips could prove effective.” – Isabelle 

“The field of journalism probably should continue thriving with the new growth of technology.”  – Myah M. 

“The future of journalism should strive to adapt by appealing to the younger Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences by moving towards unbiased, fact-based journalism, as well as leaning towards more short-form, entertaining content.” – M

“Journalism should appeal to younger audiences, as youth is our future and the next voice, so it will be more geared toward social media.” – Rosie C.

Telling Important Stories

“At the very least, I want it to remain alive in our world. So many things threaten journalism as a whole, and I think that it’s an extremely important part of society and culture. It allows us as U.S. citizens to practice that ‘freedom of press’ right to express information to our audience. Additionally, journalism is fun! Not only do we write, but we also create. Journalism is a form of art—any writing is. However, this genre of art is not only for us to enjoy and reflect upon, but for the world to witness.” – Eliana H.

“I believe the field of journalism should grow to be something more appreciated in the world— something that more people view as a fun and interesting hobby rather than a boring, forced, unimportant activity. It should be a world where people feel happy and comfortable expressing themselves in various ways.” – Leo M. 

“I believe that the field of journalism should be a place curated to allow each person to freely express themselves through their writing, without being afraid of the ambush from opposers. Oftentimes people feel restricted, censoring themselves but writing should be seen as a gift of expression and creativity.” – Elaina C.