Can Print Media Survive The 21st Century?

Oct 27, 2011
Michael Hogan

Print media: a dying industry? - capl@washjeff.edu

Is the internet making print media redundant?

By the beginning of the 2000s most newspapers and magazines with long traditions in print had already began to make their content available online, with some making the transition merely for the fear of being left behind. Now computers were linked together into the global network known as the internet, from now on publications started to operate essentially on an international scale. This “global nature of the new communications means that individuals can consume journalism made all over the world and discuss it across nation boundaries.” (Hargreaves, 2005: 129)

By making their content available on their websites the newspapers were effectively giving their news away for free. As well as providing (generally) free information, updates occur any time – day or night, “instantaneous coverage of current news events has now become “a routine element of journalistic production.” (McNair, 2001: 126). Journalistic websites now provide a simultaneous log of current events literally parallel to their unfolding, written as a timeline – rather than in the traditional print style. However as McNair writes because of this collapse of the so called time-space barrier, the “immediacy” of contemporary news reporting and simple fact that there is more space on the web means news is becoming “bitty and unverified,” this has also had the effect of “reducing the time available for decision making” (2001: 127) something that print media and its long history are all too aware of.

Citizens as journalists: power to the people

The web though is not just limited to businesses and corporations, anyone can register their own domain and there are numerous free platforms for one to blog personal musings.

Citizen journalism and user generated content (UGC) has flourished in the past 15 years, essentially giving a voice to anyone with access to a modem, heard by anyone who bothers to pay listen. This has essentially revolutionised journalism, with global autonomous online communities existing for users with a common purpose sharing information – in direct competition with professionals. One of the real positives of the internet is its “potential to democratise the media, creating a genuine public sphere by restoring control over the means of communication to the people.” (McNair, 2001:142) There is however a warning to be made, as the internet is almost impossible to regulate it is fraught with potential dangers – unverified facts and gossip can spread masquerading as the truth, print media on the other hand is generally held in a higher regard by the public, to quote CP Scott “comment is free, but the facts are sacred.”

Those dangers aside user interactivity has given the public a forum for which to directly communicate bypassing the journalists as the traditional gatekeepers:

Some of the most interesting news and conversations about issues are coming from outside the big outlets, and the big ones are not always the fastest to innovate. (A Craig, 2010: 143)

Newspaper websites as a result actively attempt to flout interactivity by allowing users to comment on message boards beneath articles, thus encouraging conversation and debate among readers. Print newspapers provide their own comment pages but interactivity between readers is minimal and certainly not instant.

This personal aspect of the internet means users can now even create their own personal web landscapes, Zatso.net (among others) allows users to produce a personalised newscast, simply by requesting what type of news stories interest them:

“The danger is that in doing so news consumers may expose themselves to a more limited range of material than if they had used traditional news media and may in fact miss something that would have interested them. Rather than spread understanding and tolerance, the web can therefore reinforce prejudice. (Rudin, Ibbotson, 2002: 96)

Rapid technological advances

Since the introduction of web 2.0 smoother navigation exists now between pages and faster download speeds mean a larger variety of media has become commonplace. From a journalism perspective this can add valuable colour to an article and keep surfers engaged, for instance a video can capture the mood of a piece more powerfully than text, or the potential to download free mp3s from artists or stream trailers for the latest blockbuster giving consumers more. “Everything a newspaper used to do somebody else is doing more quickly, more attractively, more efficiently and in a more interesting and unfettered way.” (John Katz, 1995, as quoted by McNair, 2001) Ian Hargreaves says “today, newspapers are in remorseful, if gradual, decline.” (Hargreaves, 2005: 11)

Despite the obvious advantages of the web- speed and cost specifically, print media still plays a major part in journalism. Different mediums can utilise different aspects of storytelling, as Robert Hood explains:

Visual stories are told with pictures. An interesting narrative can be told with/or video. A process or motion can be explained with information graphics or video. Detail and context can be delivered with text. (Craig, 2010:9)

Print journalism is able to provide a wealth of information whist covering events and that the web cannot really compete with. Of course web can provide in depth stories but staff in online newsrooms are often small. Impracticalities such as screen resolution and user attention span also affect length of article. Furthermore statistics show that on average a web user will read at most just 28% of words written in a web article. Websites can combat the detail issue by providing relevant HTML links to add colour to their story, directing traffic away from their sites. The primary sources of news - official documents and press releases for instance, are now widely available to the public.

With a wealth of information available on the web as a whole, online media users are therefore in control of their content, print media however, subconsciously controls the reader's habits – a consumer once reading a magazine merely has the articles at hand to indulge in:

“web users cannot be passive – they are required to make decisions and choices all the time they are surfing. This is even greater than is required for the print medium – when the consumer has to decide (usually) what to purchase, then to read it and in what order.” (Rudin, Ibbotson, 2002: 95)

Print and online: working together

With the amount of material available on the web it becomes possible for the user to be bombarded with so much information they loose interest quickly and move on. But this seemingly infinite amount of space on the web will provide an exceptionally useful archive for researchers and will almost certainly prove to be vital in the understanding of contemporary cultures for future generations. Print media on the other hand has a relatively short shelf life and in the case of newspapers are only available for a day however their audiences remain loyal and it still probably holds more credibility than the internet.

Thus for now the way in which online and print media (of the same publication) can best work with each other must be by maximising each other's potential for reaching the widest possible audience. Print can direct readers to content on their websites that are only possible online, while keeping some of articles exclusive. “The most successful newspapers were the ones which were able to defend a niche which they had already dominated in print... like the Guardian... or the Boston Globe.” ( Hall, 2001: 229)

Whether online publications eventually hide their material behind paywalls remains to be seen. For now – despite the prophecies of its death, the print medium is still strong, it provides great in depth coverage, can be passed around, read –and seen on the go and is not susceptible to viruses. Online media is still a growing force, with its interactivity, moving pictures and speedy reporting and is still making print publishers re-evaluate their status in their medium. As Hargreaves explains “where once journalism's reach was confined by the time it took to haul bundles of newsprint from one end of a country to the other, now it is global, instantaneous, and interactive.” (Hargreaves, 2005:2) So where does all of this leave print journalism? As McNair concludes “Newspapers will inevitably update their services and presentation, emphasising what it is they do that is truly unique to print and downgrading or even abandoning those elements of their traditional output that the internet can do better.” (McNair, 2001 :142) The printed press will still be around for a long time, but for now online journalism with its all of its quirks and gimmicks will only grow stronger and stronger.