Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
R.I.P. Newspaper... Just Kidding
Since I was 12 years old, I've wanted to be a journalist. For at least the last five years people have doubted my choice to study journalism. "The newspaper is going out style" they tell me or "Good luck with getting a job." But what those pessimists don't realize is this: Yes, the paper is experiencing lower readership trends, but the younger generation will get older, settle down and will be more interested in new, thus leading to reading the paper regardless if it is on a tablet, on their phone or on paper.
The paper isn't going to disappear it is just evolving to the Electronic Age. People have to get there news from somewhere. Journalists will be and are still be reporting the news. Tom Robinson wrote an article that was published in HNN titling 2009 as "The year the newspaper died." I obviously disagree with this article, because next to me is today's issue of USA Today.
Last week, I attended a lecture about the future of digital media and journalism. The presenter pointed out that newspapers have been preparing for a change for at least the last two decades. Papers tested out the waters with the online subscription and some paper chose free subscriptions. Online papers have the freedom to upload stories as or when they are happening; unlike the print version. Some publications hold information from the online paper to get readers to pick up the paper edition.
Online paper editions open up a whole new world for the paper's readers. The reader's is now capable of commenting on a story they like. Designers have begun to use interactive graphics and visuals that allow readers to take a closer look at the story. The New York Times did a marvelous piece with interactive design. The series, called 1 in 8 Million, allows the reader to click on individual stories of average people in the city who have done something extraordinary.
An article from American Journalism Review did a great job of explaining the misunderstandings of the decline in newspapers. According to AJP newspapers actually have the upper hand. Newspapers have localism, brand-name recognition, historic profitability and monopoly status and a few others, but you get my point. Newspapers have been around for over 300 years and it will have to take more than the internet to demolish this huge powerhouse.
The paper isn't going to disappear it is just evolving to the Electronic Age. People have to get there news from somewhere. Journalists will be and are still be reporting the news. Tom Robinson wrote an article that was published in HNN titling 2009 as "The year the newspaper died." I obviously disagree with this article, because next to me is today's issue of USA Today.
Last week, I attended a lecture about the future of digital media and journalism. The presenter pointed out that newspapers have been preparing for a change for at least the last two decades. Papers tested out the waters with the online subscription and some paper chose free subscriptions. Online papers have the freedom to upload stories as or when they are happening; unlike the print version. Some publications hold information from the online paper to get readers to pick up the paper edition.
Online paper editions open up a whole new world for the paper's readers. The reader's is now capable of commenting on a story they like. Designers have begun to use interactive graphics and visuals that allow readers to take a closer look at the story. The New York Times did a marvelous piece with interactive design. The series, called 1 in 8 Million, allows the reader to click on individual stories of average people in the city who have done something extraordinary.
An article from American Journalism Review did a great job of explaining the misunderstandings of the decline in newspapers. According to AJP newspapers actually have the upper hand. Newspapers have localism, brand-name recognition, historic profitability and monopoly status and a few others, but you get my point. Newspapers have been around for over 300 years and it will have to take more than the internet to demolish this huge powerhouse.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
The Northerner: Behind the Scenes
Northern Kentucky University's weekly newspaper brings the campus news to the students' fingertips. In these rare photos, readers get a sneak peek behind the scenes of the Northerner's staff meeting. The staff, all NKU students, writes for the Northerner in their spare time.
Cassie Stone, the Editor-in-Chief, heads the meeting with "kick ass awards." These awards are handed out to the staff and contributing writers that accomplish something under short deadline, complete a difficult story or do a good job in general. The meeting proceeds to the last printed issue and the pros and cons of the stories in it. For the first time in the Northerner's history, a 20-page newspaper was published and distributed. The upcoming issue and the stories in it is the last thing to be discussed.
The deadline, Tuesdays at midnight, is taken very seriously, even at the college level. The Northerner's staff meeting mimics that of a national newspaper staff meeting. The process of editing and designing the Northerner allows informatic majors the chance to practice for the real world.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)