As the economy continues to decline, the journalism industry is struggling to find more ways to cut costs and save their ship. As more metro newspapers eliminate circulation, or shut down print altogether, readers are left looking for more localized news online.
We, as students, have been motivated by the emergence of a different type of journalism -- you know, for the web -- but what are we sacrificing by making the switch to online? Will it all be glitz and glamour?
To be honest -- it’s not a pretty site. And that’s no typo; I’m talking site as in web site.
I know I've picked on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution before, but after hearing that it will no longer circulate to Athens, we are all faced with a new situation. Will we continue to read the AJC, even online?
Does a move to online really mean we have to skimp out on visuals? Printing photos can be a nightmare, so it only makes sense that moving to online calls for the use of those beautiful screens! And yet, both the AJC and Athens Banner-Herald lack prominent news photos on the front page of their web sites.
Don’t know what I mean? Take a look at Online Athens. Right now the only photo (without scrolling down) is half of a picture of a woman reading. As for the AJC, there’s a photo of firefighters in front of a house, a prom couple and Madonna.
CBS Sunday Morning News ran a piece on the decline of the newspaper on March 29, 2009. Here is the entire thing, approx 10 min. long:
The print version can be found here.
There is a quote that explains what we're all learning,
"What that means to me is not only do you have to know how to report and write, you have to be a wire service reporter, and blog, and you have to know how to use a video camera, you have to know how to appear before a TV camera, be on the radio," said Inquirer editor Bill Marimow. "You really have to be a maestro of the media."
He's referring to web journalism, of course. When you look at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution online, are you seeing the best use of these elements? To be truthful, I'm concerned that this push to online journalism is going to come at a great cost - of photo, video and design.
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Will I continue to read the AJC, even online? Yes. While we have all ragged on the AJC on this blog, ajc.com remains a great website to get a synopsis of local and national news. I can't remember the last time I picked up an actual hard copy of the ajc. However, I visit ajc.com incessantly. According to Firefox, I have accessed ajc.com over 3,000 times this year. Ajc.com offers lots of features such as photo galleries and interesting blogs that you wouldn't find in the newspaper itself. Additionally, their coverage of UGA sports is decently good. Chip Towers usually breaks stories about UGA athletics before anyone else. I also find it interesting that ajc.com blatantly markets itself to people at work who are browsing the Internet instead of doing what they should be doing. Hence, the prom, fashion, and "private quarters" features on ajc.com All of these features are great time killers in the office (or in class!).
ReplyDeleteYour well-written blog raises several excellent questions. What impact do you think the "glitz and glamour" of the Web will have on the text? Are some news organizations rushing to the Web without the right structures in place (i.e. solid designers who have a grasp on Web 2.0)?
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