The choice of a keynote speaker says a lot about an organization's outlook, so I was eager to hear what Richard Gingras, Google's head of news products, had to say at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) in August in Chicago. The self-described "technologist" revisited good questions about the future of journalism practice and pedagogy, and received a standing ovation for his calls to "rethink everything" and create "constant innovation" through digital media technology. As he noted, today's educators will help inspire tomorrow's innovators.

But his broader message was disconcerting to those of us who feel that a celebration of new digital media too often deterministically assumes that new technological forms will and should dictate journalistic practices and participation. This worship of the limitless potential of technology ignores the limitations faced by journalists and citizens alike as online power is increasingly concentrated in the hands of traditional profit-oriented players who dominate the media landscape and impede the democratic potential of new technology.