Are any news outlets doing exceptional reporting on the Sept. 11 attacks and their aftermath?
Andersen: I think The New York Times is utterly earning its reputation as the best news organization in the world. The Wall Street Journal is doing a great job too. TV news is doing O.K., but just O.K., in my opinion. As soon as there’s no significant breaking news to report, which is most of the time, I’m afraid that a great deal of TV news strikes me as simplistic and shallow chatter. IWM: What’s the biggest story in media right now? Andersen: Oh, I don’t know. I’ll give two, one specific and one general: the decline of print magazines both as businesses and cultural epicenters, and the absolute uncertainty about what the media landscape will look like five years from now. IWM: What caused print magazines to decline, in your view? Andersen: One [cause] is the risk-averse corporate magazine culture that seemed to descend in the last 10 to 15 years — the triumph of nervous prudence over roll-the-dice, stay-the-course vision, a trend probably exacerbated by the consolidation of media c
