Online Journalism: not just news, but also entertainment.

When we first think about news it is rarely first thought of as a form of entertainment, which makes sense. If something important is happening, the public wants cold-hard facts and numbers from a trusted source. . . the newspaper. However, the internet has the ability to combine these facts with more opinion, sarcasm, and satire which has the ability to turn the news into a more vibrant form of entertainment.

Online news sources whether they be a branch of actual newspapers, wikis, or blogs are all examples of the evolution of a technology that is optional for the public to use; they still have the option of having e newspaper) about the same issue, but instead he puts his own spin on it.

He says, "The closer we get, the more I think this whole conversion to DTV is a scam to make money for the government, the consumer electronics industry, and others who stand to gain from this conversion. For young folks who grew up with iPod earphones stuck in their head and a cell phone in their hands, it is no big deal. But not everyone can handle the intricacies of the change. And with DTV, instead of a little snow but a perfectly watchable picture, we get no picture with a weak signal. We also are subjected to compression artifacts and pixellation."

The style of writing is more informal than the newspaper, yet it is not so informal that it should be dismissed as inaccurate. After reading The Wall Street article with the constant reference to how businesses were being affected by this change in technology, I instantly took into consideration Randy's theory about this 'scam.' Along with his blog he posted a video that was meant to be comedic, yet also grasps a sad truth in how the transition to digital TV may be affecting older generations. Take a look at the video



This is how online sources provide news through entertainment. It may not involve as many statistics, but it accentuates the issue in unique ways. Another benefit of online news sources is what I have mentioned before in my blogs, and what was discussed the first day of class: it is live. It is easy for news followers to see how articles and opinions have evolved, looking back at earlier blogs or posts on newspaper sites. It is far more difficult to do so with an actual newspaper unless you want to stack them up in your home, or you want to go dig up old information in a library.

As a 19 year old who grew up with internet information technology, using the internet for news has become a habit. This is where my mother and I differ in how we do things. Since I can remember, my mom cannot go to sleep until she has read the paper. She gets in her chair and will sit there for at least an hour each night. Her reasons are that the news on TV is too monotonous and depressing, and she can't stand pop ups and advertisements on the internet. So, reading the newspaper has become a part of her everyday life, it is was she is comfortable doing.

As comfortable as she may be, she may be getting outnumbered by internet users. Due to a 16% drop in advertising for the printed newspaper The Washington Post, many companies are laying off workers. "Time Inc., publisher of Fortune, plans to slash 600 jobs, according to a report in The New York Times. Gannett Co., publisher of USA Today, plans 3,000 job cuts, according to Reuters, and the Tribune Co.’s Los Angeles Times plans to cut 10% of its workforce." (Original Article).

Maybe printing companies are slowly starting to surrender. First comes analog to digital... next comes paperboy to bloggers? We'll see!

Sources:
Bustillo, M., Lawton, C. (2008 Oct 28). Some Consumers Keep Old TVs Despsite Switch to Digital Signals. The Wall Street Journal, p B8.

Meant as Humor, But Makes a Good Point. Retrieved October 30, 008, from http://rktoday.blogspot.com/2008/10/meant-as-humor-but-makes-good-point.html



Print Media Companies Slash Jobs as Economy Sputters. 30 October 2008. http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1812128232245338045&postID=7759364108462733871