Journalists soon on same list as dodo hunters?

I love my work. Actually, journalism and writing are not just a source of income. Well, not to me anyway. Journalism is my passion, a crucial part of identity. I need to write like I need to breathe (or eat chocolate, as a matter of fact).

Not too long ago I was asked what profession I would chose, instead of being a freelance journalist and photographer. Honestly, I could not come up with anything, not even after thinking very, véry hard (well, as a kid I wanted to be an astronaut - but since heights and I are a match made in hell, I was forced to let go of that dream).

What I like - no, LOVE - about journalism is that you learn something new with every story you write and every person you interview. From the rules of rugby to the causes of cervical cancer. From why the DRC is such a mess to why one should not cook in aluminum pots. From Tokyo Sexwale's childhood to  why malaria is still not under control. And more.

Then there is that adrenaline high that goes together with news hunting, the overpowering feeling of being 'there' when 'something' happens and the sensation of defeating the tightest of all deadlines. It just makes me feel alive.

And that is why it makes me sad and scared to see what is happening to the media. The one newspaper after another is retrenching staff and down scaling its news room. Magazines face a same faith, to prevent closure. In South Africa, various magazines have given up the ghost over the past months and various newspapers are forced to fire even some of the most senior journalists the country's media spectrum has to offer. Freelance rated are decimated, and so on and so on.

I was told by friends and family overseas that this is happening a around the world and that South Africa is not unique. An American news paper house is   even considering one newsroom for all its 57 papers!

It just make me wonder ... Will a newspaper journalist soon be something of the past? Will it become an extinct profession and end up on the same list as tannator, steam train operator,  parcheminer, pyramid builder, dodo hunter, and gong farmer. Or an honest politician ....