A new report calling for a "reconstruction" of American journalism that includes non-profit approaches, open access to information and increased foundation funding for news was released last month by Leonard Downie Jr., former executive editor of The Washington Post, and Michael Schudson, a journalism professor at Columbia University. The report described an evolving journalistic ecosystem that needed more than the traditional advertising-based support.

According to the authors, the news gathering and reporting model has shifted from one made up of exclusively professional media staffers to one augmented by freelancers, bloggers, citizens and university faculty and students. In this emerging model, the authors assert that funding sources are now more diverse, including foundations, philanthropists, universities and citizen donors.

A new distribution model for news is developing - one that includes traditional news media as well as blogs, podcasts, vodcasts and tweets. While some of this work is performed independently, some is being done in conjunction with local media outlets. With the gathering and distribution of news becoming so diversified, new funding models must emerge.

The authors propose several public sources of support for this new type of journalism model:

• Allowing local news organizations to operate as non-profits, enabling them to receive tax-deductible donations as well as advertising revenues

• Support from foundations and philanthropists, similar to that received by the arts

• Orienting public radio and television to the local community, increasing local news reporting

• Institutional news reporting by universities and colleges

• Establishing a fund for local news that could be created with fees collected by the FCC based upon media use or licenses

• Increasing the dissemination and accessibility of public information collected by governments, non-profits and journalists utilizing digital media

The authors conclude that, "It may not be essential to save or promote any particular news medium, including print newspapers. What is paramount is preserving independent, original, credible reporting, whether or not it is profitable, and regardless of the medium in which it appears."