In The Era of Citizen Journalism James Macpherson Wants to Outsource Reporting To India?

Josh Marshall has just posted a link to a bizarre news story about the news business. It seems James Macpherson of the Website Pasadena Now wants to outsource coverage of local Pasadena city government news to a journalist based in India.

But he said it can be done from afar now that weekly Pasadena City Council meetings can be watched over the Internet. And he said the idea makes business sense because of India's lower labor costs.

"I think it could be a significant way to increase the quality of journalism on the local level without the expense that is a major problem for local publications," said the 51-year-old Pasadena native. "Whether you're at a desk in Pasadena or a desk in Mumbai, you're still just a phone call or e-mail away from the interview."

The first articles, some of which will carry bylines, are slated to appear Friday.

Bryce Nelson, a University of Southern California journalism professor and Pasadena resident thinks "Nobody in their right mind would trust the reporting of people who not only don't know the institutions but aren't even there to witness the events and nuances. This is a truly sad picture of what American journalism could become."

CNN.com also interviewed Uday Karmarkar, a UCLA professor of technology and strategy who outsources copy editing and graphics work to Indian businesses. In his opinion, if the goal is sophisticated reporting Macpherson could end up spending more time editing than the labor savings are worth.

With all of the journalism students and all the retired journalists who would love a chance to write an occasional article living in Southern California you would think MacPhereson would be able to find somebody who would actually cover city council meetings cheap, maybe even for free.

In any event somebody needs to remind MacPhereson that journalism isn't stenography. Journalism involves knowing your beat which comes from talking to people face to face, taking notes, asking the right questions, and all the other "stuff." The kind of stuff Diane Silver, Blue Girl and some of the others do around here.