Links for the weekend | Links para o fim de semana

• The rebirth of news, The Economist

Technological change has destroyed all sorts of once-popular products, from the handloom to the Walkman, and the world has mostly been better for it. But news is not just a product: the press is the fourth estate, a pillar of the polity. Journalists investigate and criticise governments, thus helping voters decide whether to keep them or sack them. Autocracies can function perfectly well without news, but democracies cannot. Will the death of the daily newspaper—the main source of information for most educated people for at least the past century, the scourge of corrupt politicians, the conscience of nations—damage democracy?

• 4 productive summer projects for j-students, Innovation in College Media

Summer is here and the living is easy– unless you’re a journalism student. For you, the summer means extra time to catch up in your ever-changing industry. You have no time to waste. Here are a few ways you can effectively use your summer to enhance your news site and/or journalism skills.

• Guardian reporters around the world, The Guardian

View the locations of Guardian reporters stationed around the world on this interactive map. Click the reporter’s name to see a photo and links to their latest story. Click a marker on the map to see who we have positioned there.

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• Data visualization tools for free or cheap, Innovative Interactivity

After finally taking the time to watch the NewsU webinar on data visualization that I blogged about back in March, I was inclined to research more about different apps, tools and concepts required to create compelling data visualization interactives. Interestingly enough, I have found that regardless of owning the Adobe suite, anyone can put together stunning graphics with open-source applications.

• The Future of Journalism, Ourblook (got here after clicking an ad at Mashable, go figure…)

Over 25 journalists and media professionals were interviewed for this report, including John Yemma, Christian Science Monitor Editor. You can read the raw interviewsby visiting the Future of Journalism section.
You don’t get free gas from a gas station.
You don’t get free meals from a restaurant.
You wouldn’t walk into the Googleplex … that’s Google’s corporate headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. … and expect a staffer to rush to the lobby with 1,000 free shares of Google stock for you.
At least we don’t think so.
So why is the newspaper industry the only one in America that is expected to give its product … in its electronic version … away for free?
Wrestling with that question will determine the fate of this nation’s newspapers.