Is Yelp Replacing Arts Journalists?

I say, "maybe." But I also say, "hopefully." The reason behind this is because I feel individual accounts and descriptions of events from the man on the street resonate in the new social reality more than the (sometimes inaccurately) perceived notion that arts journalists, specifically critics, are some sort of alien race sent to dictate what you like. I think the dialogue started, and the flame wars that often occur, can only be a good thing. That's not to say arts journalists are unimportant or not needed (I'm here, obviously), but I think this new reality should be embraced and not feared.

I was at a conference Tuesday in Paris about the future of classical music and the press. There were heavyweights on the panel but the audience was about the same size. In other words, hardly anyone showed up. I write for MusicalAmerica.com. It was a magazine for 130 years and is now a subscription website.
I am coming more and more to the opinion that musical criticism, for example, a "gate" between the performance and the audience, is disappearing. Arts organizations are more and more providing video samples, free downloads and other goodies to make direct contact with their audience at their websites. For the young, buzz is transmitted now more effectively electronically - hardly any read a newspaper. Sic transit..etc.