This essay examines the relationship between ends and means in contemporary journalism. It suggests that the goal of capturing audiences for advertising monetization has historically shaped the structure and content of news media. It criticizes this model, pointing out that it reduces audiences to passive commodities, prioritizing economic survival over their social role. Instead, it proposes an approach focused on creating "strong publics," where audiences act as active agents in public communication and collective action. Through a still very preliminary historical analysis, canonical journalism —neutral and text-centric— is contrasted with alternative forms that, at the dawn of journalism, such as social agitation journalism, are characterized by the fusion of information and activism, placing social action and citizens as agents at the center. An eight-level scale of audience-media interaction is presented, ranging from superficial consumption to the creation of their own media, highlighting the importance of extrinsic ends (strengthening democracy, citizen mobilization) over intrinsic ends (media survival). The article concludes that rethinking the ends of journalism, drawing inspiration from historical practices and participatory horizons, is key to transforming audiences into political subjects capable of influencing the public sphere. Platforms like Ciudad Vaga could promote this approach, prioritizing critical communication and the generation of citizen media structures over traditional market metrics.