Of course, we could go the way of the scribes (yikes!) and make journalism just part of everyone’s social activity. That causes me pain to write, but it’s one scenario to consider an debate.

In my most pessimistic hour, I begin to wonder whether content itself is a loss-leader — meant to be given away Radiohead-style. While the money is earned elsewhere: in the platforms (Google), in the merchandising, in the events.

It’s instructive to remember that advertising as a revenue model for electronic media came about during the rise of industrialized media at the outset of the 21st century. Radio did not begin as advertiser-supported. And as the industrial models fracture and dissipate, we should no longer rely solely on advertising as the way to support our new forms of communication.