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FUTURE OF JOURNALISM.
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Challenges to traditional newspaper journalism from digital revolution, Internet, economics, WEB TV.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Challenges to traditional newspaper journalism from digital revolution, Internet, economics, WEB TV.
Paper Introduction:
Digital communication systems are changing the future of journalism. Traditional limitations of time, space, medium, and place are rapidly disappearing. The new media made possible by digital communication systems will make it easier for people to connect with information sources. Although traditional journalism has lost much of its authority in the new Information Age, there will continue to be a need for high-quality reporting and interpretation of the news.
Granted, the influence of journalists has diminished in the past few decades. Recently, Vanity Fair magazine published its annual listing of the fifty leaders of the Information Age, and only one was a journalist working for a mainstream news organization (Fulton 20). Journalists used to hold a monopoly over what types of news reached the public; with the growth of
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"Tabloid Journalism 1 1." Harper's (1992, December): 23-27.----------------------- 1 "A Tour of our Uncertain Future." Columbia JournalismReview (1996, March/April): 19-26.Hickey, Neil. Although the journalism profession will be one of the winners in thedigital communication revolution, it is likely that significant segments ofconsumers will be losers. As a result, newspaper companies aredownsizing and investing, not in newspapers, but increasingly in televisionstations, to provide the earnings growth that their shareholders crave.The current trend for downsizing in the newspaper industry can be comparedto the cost-cutting revolution in health care. Consequently, Wall Street analystswield an unprecedented amount of power over management decisions at majornewspapers: "In the push to improve the bottom line, some newspaperexecutives overreact to suggestions--or perceived suggestions--fromanalysts . . Acollege student can design a Web page that is every bit as impressive as alarge company like Newsweek. Some experts predict that television is undergoing arevolution that will make existing VCRs and television sets obsolete withinthe next decade or so. . " (King 399). . To recapture readership, many newspapers have increasingly turned totabloid journalism. Journalism helps the public make sense of its world. "CAJ's Dirty Secrets." Quill (1993, September): 23. . .dropped into the 6 s or below in most markets in 1991" (King 398).Newspaper editors now speak of "readers at risk," people that newspapersare at risk of losing as readers: young people, women, African-Americans,and Hispanics. Probably the biggest loser in the future of journalism will benewspapers. Digital communication systems are changing the future of journalism.Traditional limitations of time, space, medium, and place are rapidlydisappearing. the technical annoyances associatedwith computers and modems will keep WebTV, or any such Net-based appliance,from going mainstream" (Maloney 22 ). The new media made possible by digital communication systemswill make it easier for people to connect with information sources.Although traditional journalism has lost much of its authority in the newInformation Age, there will continue to be a need for high-qualityreporting and interpretation of the news. . Although still healthy in comparison to other types of companies,the word on Wall Street is that newspapers do not perform the way they usedto, and this makes investors nervous. Large companies like Sony and Philips are already geared up toprovide the hardware for WEB TV, which is expected to retail for about$4 . As recently as two years ago, the industry was excited about theprospects of interactive television. Among young people, especially, the lure of digitalcommunication is potent. Just as in health care, thebottom line of providing service is sometimes obscured by the need to cutcosts, so with newspaper companies the mission of the profession of qualityjournalism is likewise obscured. . Those who cannot affordaccess to the new media will be increasingly served by the tabloidjournalistic efforts of mass media. . As one televisionexecutive explained, "With multiplexing, stations could air their regularnews programs on one channel and direct viewers to a second channel wherethey'd find longer, more detailed reports on stories that interested them"(Hickey 42). . Recently, Vanity Fair magazine published its annual listing ofthe fifty leaders of the Information Age, and only one was a journalistworking for a mainstream news organization (Fulton 2 ). "Married . " (Jones 43). . Currently, television signals are sentby analog signals, the new technology involves the use of digital signals.Digital signals will create high-definition television (HDTV) and CD-quality sound. Clearly, anyprojections of the future of journalism must factor in the influence of theInternet. The future of WEB TV, however, lies in the ability ofsoftware developers to simplify the process for the millions of Americanswho are novices at negotiating the Internet. Granted, the influence of journalists has diminished in the past fewdecades. For instance, the Internet is an extremely versatileresearch tool that is being used by an increasing number of professionals:"The Internet allows you to use resources better, use better resources, anduse fewer person hours to produce your product" (Makulowich 28). The problem with theInternet, however, is the question of the credibility of information. Journalists of the future will be forced to become proficient in morethan one medium. Many of the new competitors of traditional journalism haveno journalistic background at all. "What's at Stake in the Spectrum War?" Columbia JournalismReview (1996, July/August): 39-43.Jones, Tim. Or broadcasters could air their regular commercialprogramming while airing special news reports simultaneously. Journalists report not only the facts, but the significance ofthese facts: " . Pornographic sites proliferate on theInternet. "Internet: Explore the 'Network of Networks.'" Quill (1993, September): 28.Maloney, Janice. "The Future of Newspapers." Vital Speeches of the Day(1992, April 15): 398-4 .Makulowich, John. . The losers, of course,will be children, although some software companies are creating built-indevices for parents to block access to selected Internet sites. The mostegregious of these are the true tabloids, whose reporters and editors showno concern for facts. Journalists usedto hold a monopoly over what types of news reached the public; with thegrowth of the Internet, this is no longer the case. Newspapers will be faced with even more competition from televisionif predictions about the potential of WEB TV come to fruition. . The same digital science could lead to the creation ofthousands of new channels across the country. Thus technology can help solve some of journalism's problems in servingthe needs of its customers. Granted, those who can afford access to newtechnology will be better informed; the technology will serve their desirefor immediate news at whatever depth they prefer. Added to these economic woes, newspaper readership ingeneral has been on the decline for decades: "The percentage of adults whoread a newspaper every day, in the 9 percent range in the 195 s . TheInternet also provides a community of professionals through which toexchange ideas. providing the background, perspective, and context togive a depth of enlightenment . Unfortunately, the new Information Agewill contribute to the widening of the quality gap in journalism. Some analysts are unsurewhether this will be possible: " . Thiscavalier attitude toward the facts not only diminishes the authority of thejournalism profession, it is a reflection of the fact that many newspapersfeel compelled to become more like television to survive: "Emulating TV isthe precise strategy that will doom newspapers" (King 399). Newspaper readership is particularly sensitive to recessions,and the United States has been slow to emerge from a recession that hitnewspapers hard. . WEB TVwould allow the user to hook his or her television set up to the Internet.Thus the television screen replaces the small computer screen. Another potentially powerful rival to newspapers could be spectrumtelevision. . "The Day of the Analysts." Columbia Journalism Review (1996,November/December): 42-44.King, Maxwell. Part of the motivation for newspapers to assume the survival mode andlower their journalistic standards is the economics of the marketplace.Newspapers once enjoyed outstanding profit margins. During the 198 s,large metropolitan dailies with profit margins of 25 or 3 percent werecommon. In today's economy, these margins hover somewhere around 15percent. Works CitedFulton, Katherine. At that time, few experts could predict the unprecedented growthof the Internet: "Now interactive TV trials have disappeared intotechnical and balance-sheet quagmires while hundreds of new 'channels' areadded to the World Wide Web every single day" (Fulton 2 ). As one journalist notes, "You must know thesource of the data; how it got in the computer; and all its drawbacks"(McIntosh 23). This revolution has to do with the way thattelevision signals are transmitted. Spectrum television would pave the way for multi-plexing, allowingbroadcasters to broadcast on numerous channels. If journalistsconcentrate on their traditional strengths, they will be able to survivethe uncertainty of the future of the new media. This price includes a device that will allow the user to send E-Mailmessages as well. . Thisinnovation would not only provide computer users with freedom of movement,it would replace digital images with the sharper accuracy of televisedimages. One of thedrawbacks of the digital communication revolution is that it has madeavailable a glut of information that is difficult for the layperson todecipher. The papers have become more sensationalist; storieshave become simpler and shorter: "To be heard above the din of growingcompetition, much of journalism today finds itself in tabloid mode,shouting and trivializing to attract attention" (Fulton 22). With WEB TV, people will be able to view these sites on big-screen TVs if desired and unfortunately this lure will prove irresistibleto those who are addicted to pornographic images. Multiplechannels for each broadcaster would require a multiplicity of advertisers,and as one television executive notes, " . dealing with complexity, offering sophistication,using narrative and explanatory journalism to provide layers ofunderstanding . there is no evidence thatsufficient advertising revenues exist to support these dreams [ofmultiplexing]" (Hickey 43). In a libel lawsuit when questioned regarding thesource of his story a reporter from one tabloid published in Boca Raton,Florida, testified, "It's total fiction. Predictions were made abouttelevision sets with the capacity to view 5 channels and movies ondemand. with Internet?" Fortune (1996, September 3 ): 218-22 .McIntosh, Shawn. Undoubtedly, the ability of WEB TV to transmit pornography directlyinto the consumer's household will be a major selling point for this newtechnology. Thelimitation on spectrum television, however, will be advertising. As one journalist notes, "A related (and possibly even morepowerful) lure is the historical driver of consumer-electronics innovation,pornography" (Maloney 22 ). Magazine publishing on the Internet is a booming industry. . I made it all up. Uncertainty is a characteristic feature of the current InformationAge. I'd say about9 percent of my stories are off the top of my head" (Tabloid 26).
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