Paine demonstrates necessary, old-school journalism

On Tuesday afternoon, FiveThirtyEight.com writer Neil Paine provided something that a reader needs every once in a while: a well thought-out solution to a well-known problem.

Paine broke down the reasoning behind the collapse of college football’s BCS system and he also explained why the NCAA went to the BCS system in the first place. He then gave a possible solution and proceeded to explain what is wrong with the current ‘committee’ system.

This piece was well-done because it gave the reader what it needed: a full explanation of what is wrong with the college football postseason system and a possible solution. Although it was not an editorial or opinion piece, it served as a foundation for readers to gain an opinion on the issue.

As a journalist, your articles can serve many different purposes. Mostly they will be about newsworthy events or people, but sometimes they are about what the reader wants and needs to know. Here, Paine served that purpose.

This journalistic purpose goes back to what the profession was founded on. Before television and mass communication, newspaper writers would explain events or situations to their readers. Reporters were trusted sources for this kind of access.

By informing the public of an issue and what it means, Paine is performing the most old-school facet of journalism. While most of journalism now has to do with entertainment, this piece served a more informative purpose.

In an era where people rely more and more on abstract internet sources (and not so much journalistic sources), this piece was refreshing to read because it served such an important purpose to the reader. While this kind of writing is not warranted often, it is needed occasionally to not only inform the audience, but also to maintain the credibility of journalists everywhere.