Comments on: How the Newspaper Industry today is like the Soviet Union, circa 1989 http://blog.jameshiggs.com/2009/04/01/how-the-newspaper-industry-today-is-like-the-soviet-union-circa-1989/ James Higgs's Blog Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:53:17 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: higgis http://blog.jameshiggs.com/2009/04/01/how-the-newspaper-industry-today-is-like-the-soviet-union-circa-1989/comment-page-1/#comment-2442 higgis Thu, 02 Apr 2009 11:08:30 +0000 http://blog.jameshiggs.com/?p=239#comment-2442 Just to be clear: I'm not saying that the inevitability of collapse was obvious at the time, just that there was, in retrospect, no other possible outcome. Further to your point on the arms race: if it *was* the arms race that caused the collapse of the Soviet Union, why did America not suffer the same collapse? Just to be clear: I’m not saying that the inevitability of collapse was obvious at the time, just that there was, in retrospect, no other possible outcome.

Further to your point on the arms race: if it *was* the arms race that caused the collapse of the Soviet Union, why did America not suffer the same collapse?

]]> By: higgis http://blog.jameshiggs.com/2009/04/01/how-the-newspaper-industry-today-is-like-the-soviet-union-circa-1989/comment-page-1/#comment-2441 higgis Thu, 02 Apr 2009 10:54:51 +0000 http://blog.jameshiggs.com/?p=239#comment-2441 You're right that the right-wing consensus is that Reagan's policy was responsible for the collapse of the Soviet Union, but I don't think that's correct. The economic stagnation didn't come about because of the arms race, but because there was no engine to drive productivity other than fear. The Soviet economy had, basically, never worked. It had been driven by the mad dash to catch up with the West, pre-war and then the all-out effort to defeat the Germans. After Stalin's death, or maybe more accurately after Khruschev's "secret speech" to the 20th congress, there was only ever going to be one outcome. Whatever success Stalinism could claim was built upon a gigantic lie. Once that lie was openly acknowledged, the USSR could never have survived. I think it would have collapsed without the arms race, eventually, maybe sooner, and of course we'll never know. You say that no everyone is twittering or reading feeds. That's true, in the same way that not everyone was using Facebook to keep in touch with their friends in early 2007. But the technology to do the job of an editorial desk is now clearly something within our reach. It is *only* a matter of time. I agree that the future for newspapers as we currently understand them is bleak, as bleak as the fate of the post-collapse "republics". And this is entirely their own fault. If the newspapers planned properly for the inevitable, indeed embraced it, it wouldn't be nearly as painful as their current strategy of trying to shore up the old model. You’re right that the right-wing consensus is that Reagan’s policy was responsible for the collapse of the Soviet Union, but I don’t think that’s correct. The economic stagnation didn’t come about because of the arms race, but because there was no engine to drive productivity other than fear. The Soviet economy had, basically, never worked. It had been driven by the mad dash to catch up with the West, pre-war and then the all-out effort to defeat the Germans. After Stalin’s death, or maybe more accurately after Khruschev’s “secret speech” to the 20th congress, there was only ever going to be one outcome.

Whatever success Stalinism could claim was built upon a gigantic lie. Once that lie was openly acknowledged, the USSR could never have survived.

I think it would have collapsed without the arms race, eventually, maybe sooner, and of course we’ll never know.

You say that no everyone is twittering or reading feeds. That’s true, in the same way that not everyone was using Facebook to keep in touch with their friends in early 2007. But the technology to do the job of an editorial desk is now clearly something within our reach. It is *only* a matter of time.

I agree that the future for newspapers as we currently understand them is bleak, as bleak as the fate of the post-collapse “republics”. And this is entirely their own fault. If the newspapers planned properly for the inevitable, indeed embraced it, it wouldn’t be nearly as painful as their current strategy of trying to shore up the old model.

]]> By: Noel O'Reilly http://blog.jameshiggs.com/2009/04/01/how-the-newspaper-industry-today-is-like-the-soviet-union-circa-1989/comment-page-1/#comment-2440 Noel O'Reilly Thu, 02 Apr 2009 09:42:46 +0000 http://blog.jameshiggs.com/?p=239#comment-2440 I find your analogy with the Soviet Union stretches credibility. The Soviet economy collapsed largely because of the arms race and not just because of the contradictions of the command economy (there are plenty of contradictions in the capitalist system, aren't there?). Post Soviet Union the former republics are pretty scary places so I'm not sure where that leaves us re your internet comparison. One interesting aspect of this is that Gorbachev and the other glasnost leaders were terrified of Reagan's Star Wars idea. Although it was laughed at in the West they talked themselves into believing it threatened their existence. It is tempting to see the death of print message as a similar phenomenon - we're talking ourselves into the death of newspapers and periodicals, although they clearly will not exist in their current form. After all radio has survived not only TV but the internet too - infact the internet is a pretty good medium for radio. I also think digital journalists have a false idea of how people in general want to gather their news - not everyone is twittering and reading feeds etc. #yam I find your analogy with the Soviet Union stretches credibility. The Soviet economy collapsed largely because of the arms race and not just because of the contradictions of the command economy (there are plenty of contradictions in the capitalist system, aren’t there?). Post Soviet Union the former republics are pretty scary places so I’m not sure where that leaves us re your internet comparison.
One interesting aspect of this is that Gorbachev and the other glasnost leaders were terrified of Reagan’s Star Wars idea. Although it was laughed at in the West they talked themselves into believing it threatened their existence. It is tempting to see the death of print message as a similar phenomenon – we’re talking ourselves into the death of newspapers and periodicals, although they clearly will not exist in their current form. After all radio has survived not only TV but the internet too – infact the internet is a pretty good medium for radio.
I also think digital journalists have a false idea of how people in general want to gather their news – not everyone is twittering and reading feeds etc. #yam

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