By James Murray

If you’ve ever wondered whether the public value well-crafted journalism over churnalism, freelance writer Keith Ng is making a well made point.

Ng is a successful freelance writer who has been published in many of this country's mainstream media outlets.

His bio says he is holding out for teen girl mag Crème, but he specialises in serious articles about politically contentious issues and regularly writes for Russel Brown’s publicaddress.net in a blog named “On Point”.

His most recent story is about the Association of Community Retailers, a pro-Tobacco group purporting to be representing small retailers that is bankrolled by Imperial Tobacco.

In his blog, which was in part inspired by a Rory McKinnon story, he calls out the mainstream media for publishing press releases by ACR without acknowledging who they are funded by.

It’s well worth a read – a very good example of an online journalist keeping mainstream journalists to task.

What interests me though as an aside is the final line of the blog.

Man, this post took a LOT of work. If you think this sort of work is useful and valuable, please consider funding it. I’ve started a Givealittle page for the purpose.

He later tweeted:

“I need another $72.20, and crowdfunded journalism would officially pay more than freelance rates.”

A look at the page shows that people have indeed found his work valuable – paying between $5 to $50 for his work in retrospect.

Most donors are anonymous but one with the moniker “DawgBelly” writes:

“Real journalism is what this country needs, Not the fluffy wuffy churnalism we get on a daily basis. Happy to donate.”

Ng is currently on $855, more than he would have been paid at a freelance rate for his work.

I congratulate him and all who have paid money for this article – it’s a very good signal to the media that quality journalism is in demand.

As usual it would be too easy though to set this up as a battle between new media, mainstream media, old school and new school.

I hope this doesn’t happen. In every media presentation I have given and on a daily basis in the newsroom I have pressed for quality journalism in the work my online staff provide. I know our television news is similar. If I had budget I would happily pay for Ng’s work.

Not everything the mainstream media provides is going to be akin to Ng’s work – that is not entirely our role.

But therein lies the problem, the budget is not necessarily always there for the sort of work Ng provides and other stories are a lot cheaper and quicker to produce.

There is a growing imperative in some circles for news organisations like 3 News to be fast and provide immediate information. This is important, but I feel a little of the slow-food revolution could rub off on journalism and the public who consume it. Quality takes time, if you appreciate it you have to wait and consume it in smaller doses.

From a business point of view, mainstream media shouldn’t squirm at alternatives like “Give A Little”, we are all seeking new and innovative revenue models. Whether this be through advertising or funded by user is a well-argued debate at the centre of the future of successful online journalism.

No one should baulk at media companies gunning for healthy revenues – healthy revenue is the buffer that protects more complex forms of journalism. The challenge is to balance this editorially with popular video-based, or lite stories and for online editors not to be too easily overwhelmed by numbers.

A video of a girl facing down a lion may generate thousands of hits very quickly, and this is healthy stuff for a news site, but in the long term quality journalism attracts quality punters who are in it for the long haul.

A long-standing reader-base is essential for a website that is going to prosper over time – bubbles burst quickly during flashes in the pan.