Thursday, April 9, 2009

Before the Ink Dries

Progress is humanity’s greatest weapon against time. It is the reason we live in houses instead of caves, use telephones instead of smoke signals, and drive in cars instead of on horseback. Essentially, this type of natural progression eliminates wasted time and effort, delivering a new level of convenience with every new step forward.

While the concept of a print newspaper isn’t necessarily from the Stone Age, it can be added to a growing list of familiar practices and customs suffering from the expansion of the Internet. And, just as the cave’s evolution to the brick home, the print newspaper is experiencing a natural development in the form of online news.

And just as I can’t think of reasons why I’d rather live in a cave than the warm comfort of my house, there is an absence of setbacks in this line of progression. On a basic level, online news is faster. Reading more into that, however, reveals the augmentation of accessibility. Whereas the paper would lay pressed, overloaded, and threatening to the casual high school or college-age reader, online news appears in comfortable, familiar layouts, complete with “search” functions and straightforward headings to lead the reader to the article or topic they desire. Increased readership is just one key feature among online news sources.

Websites like Yahoo! and MSN offer breaking news coverage right on their homepage as users check their email or participate in search engine features. The articles are archived, ready to be accessed tomorrow, or three years from now. Gone are the complex layouts of print papers, where pages had to be ruffled through, and only libraries carried the archives of print.
This evolution is not a scary thing, despite what websites like Demiseofprint.com might try to publicize. The same basic principles, the same journalistic codes (implying employed journalism, not citizen journalism, which is another topic for another time), and the same purposes are quite evident in the new-fangled online news sources. Rather, this progression takes what we had, and enhances every aspect in regard to time, effort, and convince, just as progression should.

I don’t find frightening the fact that my children will be accustomed to reports so current that “today’s news” will become obsolete before the ink dries. Come to think of it, print newspapers seem almost as outdated as yesterday’s news…

- Amir Hamizadeh

The newspaper is dying, but not the information.

While the death of the newspaper is sad news, it does not mean that individuals will not have access to important information.

The internet has become a large and vital part of people’s lives, and while the internet continues to grow, information becomes easier to access then ever before. Individuals are able to Google the internet for information that is most important and interesting to them. While the newspaper is about to become a thing of the past, all it means is that information is being transferred and dispersed through a larger venue.

Years ago an individual searching for information about Milwaukee, while living in California, would have had a tough time finding the information, but thanks to the internet, individuals who may have relocated can simply search www.jsonline.com and read local news.

The death of the newspaper is only inevitable, and as technology grows so to does society. Everything that had once been vital to our way of lives becomes a thing of the past. It should not be a shock to anyone that the most important news source available to our grandparents is being replaced by a more technological source.

The newspaper is dying, but not the information!

The Newsies

In the days of the "newsies generation", five cents a paper is no longer an issue. Instead, everyone obtains their information from the internet.  The internet has become so vast that it literally holds any and all of the facts that people need.  A man's daily ritual is now interfered with Google's technology, by the click of a mouse.  Instead of enjoying a cup of coffee or sitting on the pot with newsprint, these days, people would rather log onto the internet to save precious time.  
Besides the internet, other technology has also impacted many peoples as far as communication is concerned.  Take the Iphone, for instance.  Internet, music, news, GPS, and entertainment are all included in this compact device. It's no wonder why people prefer technology over print, because of the high quality of advertisements these days.  Although this new technology is quite impersonal, it serves to the general public's needs and fast-paced lifestyles. 
Even though it may not seem as if this decade has progressed to this extreme, peoples are overwhelmed by the vast amount of technology that is available to today's society.  Not only are they able to use one device for anything they need, they are able to satisfy themselves without the need of direct contact, namely print.  Where is this new technology bringing us? Will there ever be print again? We see many social acceptances recycle themselves, especially fashion.  Could our knowledge concerning worldly news be one of them? It it hard to perceive the future, but time will only tell.

Mac Kenzie S.
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De-pressed: Why Newspapers Are Disappearing

De-pressed: Why Newspapers are Disappearing
by Stephanie Chadek

No one wants to get his or her news a day late. Unfortunately for newspapers, this is exactly how they deliver information. The minute significant stories break, Americans are naturally more inclined to flip on television news or scan internet headlines to stay in the loop, rather than wait overnight for a paper delivery.

Newspaper Association of America statistics show more and more newspapers are disappearing from circulation, or switching to an online only format. This noteworthy shift away from a print medium we've depended on for centuries is a natural transition that capitalizes on an online culture in which we receive what we want, when we want.

Online news offer several features that newspapers do not:
  • customizable search options
  • immediacy
  • customizable content
  • accessible anywhere there is an internet connection
  • no subscription fees for news content
  • eco-friendly
  • clean, convenient format
  • expanded subject coverage
  • interactivity
Internet news generally explores stories in more controversial and revealing ways, with sometimes blatant subjectivity- communicating, exchanging, and meshing varied opinions of citizen and professional journalists.

Ultimately, the newspaper is becoming a secondary supplement to Americans primary news sources: broadcast, cable, and Internet news. This change worries many who have valued print media's dominance for ages, but this change is an inevitable one. Our culture is driven by a desire for immediacy and ease. The ways we choose to receive our news are certainly no exception.

Newspapers: The Latest Disappearing Act

By:Nicole Behnke

The line between generations has officially been drawn. Teens are handing over desktop computers in exchange for the handheld iPod Touch. Unfortunately, older generations are feeling the heat as newspapers are disappearing. With the advancement of the World Wide Web, newspapers are becoming obsolete. One elderly man compared the extinction of papers to the death of an old friend.

The printing of papers is becoming rather pointless. By the time that paper hits your doorstep, the information could be considered old news. The reason for this is due to the fact that with newspapers going online, content is able to be updated the minute something happens.

Newspapers are reevaluating whether or not to keep the paper in print or to keep with the times and put it online. They are focusing their energy on getting long-term subscriptions because it will be a consistent customer for the paper. This will hopefully lead to a more consistent cash flow. However, it seems more financially beneficial to post articles directly onto the internet since newspapers are not bringing in the revenue that they use to.

It seems to be only a matter of time before newspapers become a thing of the past and no longer in circulation. The decline in printing has been rather gradual. However, with the convenience and speediness of the internet, newspapers could be gone with a "Poof".


No Need For Newspapers When We Have Technology


The end of newspapers has been foretold for over half a century. People can get news, sports updates, weather, live TV, and just about anything you can imagine sent to their phones or e-mail. You can find just about anything you want on the Internet, and now your phone can provide real Internet.
There is no need for people to go out and purchase a paper when you can read the stories online anywhere. Newspapers should have seen this coming because all the future generations are born in a technology age.
There is talk about a new gadget that will allow your newspaper or magazine to appear on an electronic plastic screen called an e-reader. Whether or not these gadgets will save newspaper companies we will have to wait and see.
Newspaper companies need to use technology to their benefit. They could charge for their web sites and continue to look into new products like the gadget. Many papers have raised the prices to make up for the decline in sales. The online market is growing, and can be used to earn extra revenues.
Does this mean that the postal system will come to an end with the success of e-mail and instant messaging? Is the death of the newspapers just the beginning? People can now use web cams to communicate with people in other countries instead of waiting days for a letter. There seems to be no need for paper will all the electronic devices we can use instead. Technology has changed the way we conduct our daily lives.
Jessica Davis

Why Should I Care About Civic Involvement?


As a citizen, how engaged are you? Think about it. After all, it is our right as responsible people to be educated about our society. Sadly, there is such a decline in civic engagement in our culture. The other day I participated in a discussion about how engaged in society we really are. The majority of responces went something like this.. " Hmm... well I guess I'm not very engaged at all..."


I believe that this is a result of the diminishing newspapers in society. Hardly ever do people take time to sit down and read the newspaper anymore. The most popular media among young people (I'm talking 18-mid 20s) is TV, internet, and magazines- and this is where people are getting their information. I admit it, i'm guilty too! I fall under the statistic as an UNDERinformed citizen, however I do do my part in informing myself of community happenings.


Technological inventions such as the internet make it much easier to "reach" information, but do people actively use it in that way? Although I praise the internet for such ease and accessability, it fails to stress the importance to be informed about real issues. When I say real issues, I'm not talking about Britney Spears shaving her head or Lindsay Lohan driving into a telephone pole again. Im talking about the news that has an impact on the greater society- wars, economy, community issues. Things that REALLY matter. As citizens we need to be informed so we can formulate our values, knowledge, and skills to make a valuable contribution to society.

Say Goodbye to Black and White, the Future of Technology Seems Bright

The newspaper era may have passed its expiration date, but the continuation of web-related success seems to cast a dreary shadow over failing print mogels. Even though newspapers are commonly seen published on the internet, they solely depend on newsprint editions for content and financial support. This deteriorating economic climate has newspaper publishers focusing on keeping profit margins high while also managing the steady decline of the newspaper's circulation base.

Hoping to grow readership, defend their classified advertising franchises against new media competitors and develop a new market, the newspaper industry continues to spend billions of dollars creating and publishing online editions. Driving much of that belief is that young people are online, with a mindset believing that is where newspapers should be. Many would like to see the newspaper industry survive, but that goal is unrealistic considering the direction it is currently headed. As technology continues its advances, newspapers must evolve as well to keep up with the everchanging media outlets. Newspapers are not necessarily history; traditional media must change the way it is written to keep up with the new media.

The public just doesn't seem to be reading the newspaper as much as they used to so now seems the perfect time for serious changes to fit this new era of media. Whether or not we choose to support our local and national newspapers, it is almost inevitable that one day, we will be telling our grandchildren about the ‘old fashioned’ way to get our fix of the daily news.

Why Newspapers Are Becoming Obsolete

Today's newspapers are on the down fall. With the help of blogs, facebook, twitter, and things of that nature (which directly contribute to this theme) newspapers are no longer top priority. Our society has become a society that relies heavily on citizen journalsim. We also are more interested in the easy way to do things. That would be not having to have a physical copy of a paper or being able to read something online for free.
There is also a large population of people that can't live without having that newspaper every morning before they start their day. Newspapers inform people. Being an informed citizen is contributing to society. When one knows what's going on around them they are more likely to be engaged in the events and news happening around them.
It's unfortunate that this particular quandry is occuring. With the rise of citizen journalism it's hard to imagine a comeback of the newspaper.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

The Death of the Daily Newspaper and Why We’re Better Off.

Steve Beck

The daily newspaper has been a staple of our democracy since the 19th century. It is generally held true that without a free press newspaper a democracy would not stand. This country needs investigative journalism to find news and present it objectively. Without the unfolding news reports they provide; how can a citizenry be expected to act responsibly and with compulsory knowledge?

Since the early 1950’s, with the birth of television, people have been predicting the death of the daily newspaper. Information and entertainment beaming straight to your house through a screen sure sounds like the death of newspaper (it's already happening). Television could provide the investigative journalism that is needed to inform the citizenry, but it couldn’t provide everything that a newspaper could; like the personal and classified ads. It wouldn’t happen until 50 years later that ‘information on a screen’ would be mastered to the point where newspapers are practically obsolete.

The internet is the death of the daily newspaper, but there should be no tears over the loss of our old friend. The internet can provide all the investigative journalism that a newspaper can by posting the newspaper articles online. The internet can even do what the television could not: do away with the personal and classified ads through dating websites and buy/sell websites like craiglist.com. The only fault that the internet has when comparing it to the newspaper is that it cannot be directly accessed by everyone in the world; only people with a way to connect can. But, like vines up a wall, the internet is invading every facet of the world and will soon be in reach of every person in the world, thus spelling the death for the daily newspaper.

Slaves to Technology


No longer will the working father take the newspaper in the bathroom for his daily "ritual". Nor will the teenage girl pore over tabloids and fashion magazines. They and many others will use their iPhones or other gadgets to read online.

As we enter a web-based culture, we will become a paperless society; bringing death to print journalism.

Newspapers should have accepted the dominance of the Internet long before they got into this predicament. The circulation of newspapers dwindled at the turn of the 21st Century and newspapers realized their mistake. If newspapers want to survive, they need to start charging web users for reading online publications.

If the Internet takes over print newspapers, technology will continue to generate more advances with no end in sight. Our lives are ruled by what technology allows us to use.

Think how quickly we've progressed:

For watching movies we've gone from using film reels to VHS, DVD, Blu-ray discs, and downloads on the Internet. We've gone from house phones to cell phones and each year, I swear, the freaking things keep getting smaller and complicated. We no longer communicate through letters, instead we use email and instant messaging; this will also be the death of the postal service.

At what point do we stop progressing and realize it's okay to be at this stage in technology?
-Elisabeth J.


Monday, April 6, 2009

Technological Advances are Causing The Extinction of Newspapers

TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES ARE CAUSING THE EXTICTION OF NEWSPAPERS

The time is approaching us, the ever so popular daily newspaper is becoming almost extinct in a civilization that lacks a strong economy. It could be, perhaps, that people are simply not interested in national or international news anymore, and more concerned with what is happening in their society. Or, perchace, newspapers are merely an informational tool that is part of the past, or the "industrial age." Whatever the case is, technological advances and the accessibility of the Internet have together become the main reason elite newspaper companies are seeing a decrease in their profits.

The box office, The New York Times, and broadcast networks such as CNN are all facing problems as advances in technology increase. Now, someone can go onto the Internet and read the same information they would read in a newspaper. People rely on technology for almost everything, which is why newspapers are becoming virtually pointless, but WHY? Is it because people are lazy and don't have the time to flip through large papers? Or is it because people can't afford to suscribe to newspapers during this rough economical situation?

The reasons behind the near extinction of newspapers is a difficult question to answer, but there are a few reasons that are obvious. To print a newspaper is extremely expensive, but on top of that, newspapers require a large amount of staff and machines to construct and send out the paper. On the other hand, you have a computer or other technological devices that display the same information you read in a newspaper, for practically no price. It may be accessibility of the internet or the lack of interesting content in the newspapers, but either way, newspapers are in jeopardy.

Ashley J.