The other day, I used this space to write a news article. Perhaps you've seen it. It's not an Earth-shattering story. It might come to nothing. It can't compete with a possible North Korean nuclear blast. Matt Drudge passed. Or it could reconfigure the economics of energy and agriculture. Check back in.

Why would I write a news article in a blog space? For starters, I can. The piece was picked up by BoingBoing, and seen by many people. Second, journalism can come from just about anywhere lately, even amid the cross-linking commentary and noise of the blogosphere. In fact, journalism has to come from somewhere, and it's not clear where that will be in the deep future. The trustworthy outlets that have served the country, warts and all, for generations are thankfully still in place and working overtime, but suffering financially.

This is all a preface to an e-mail I received from a friend who recently left a major media outlet. The question it asks, which I don't have an answer to, concerns the future of journalism. Reporting is an expensive and time-consuming endeavor. Who will pay for it if or when big companies can not? You can do your part by sending tips--anonymity guaranteed--to tips@thecorrespondents.com.

Please click the link below to read my friend's comments.

Anonymous media professional on the state of the media:

"When I think of the current state of print media it reminds me of being a kid and staring at that huge mound of Nestle's Quick chocoate [sic] powder slowly disolving [sic] into my cold glass of milk. I used to imagine a little man scrambling up the sides desperately trying to get as high as possible to avoid sinking into the milk with the powder, but in the end, the very tip top would go under, and so would the imaginary guy. Whenever a newspaper announces a redesign or shuffles up the staff or adds a new entertainment feature to great fanfare, it feels like that guy scrambling up the powder. Temporary fixes. But in the end.....glub, glub...."