WHERE'S WALDO?

Online journalists now have a plethora of design and storytelling options. A sense of time and place can be conveyed via a slideshow and details can be expanded by including hyperlinks. Clearly the mastering, or at least the contemplation of inclusion, of such methods and new technologies is vital for those journalists who wish to keep up with current trends and consumer demands. But just as it is in print, a ‘sense of story’ remains integral to holding the reader’s attention and more importantly, successfully immersing them in the story’s ultimate purpose or point.

Journalist Regina McCombs contacted four television editors to harness opinion on the blurring of print and television elements in online journalism (http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=101&aid=125795). As she talked to each of them, each brought up the importance of an issue that has relevance in all forms of storytelling; finding a ‘sense of pace’.

NBC News Editor John Hyjek refers to the use of multimedia elements such as slideshows, as needing to follow the ‘rule of waldo’. Waldo is a comic character created by Martin Handford which is hidden in each of his illustrations. "What happens when you find Waldo?”, asks Hyjek. “You turn the page, of course. You move on to the next illustration. In the same vein in video editing, the moment you glean the important information, it's time to move on to the next shot."

Jim Douglas, a former NPPA Photographer of the year, pointed out that importance of audio in a multimedia story. "The importance of sound is to bring the viewer a much more intimate sense of reality, to take the viewer where we went."

As journalism traverses the plains of technology, the balancing of successfully using multimedia tools to tell the story, as opposed to cluttering a story with their inclusion, will be one to follow with interest.

MONEY TALKS

The coming of the digital age has resulted in many boundaries becoming unclear, unstable and essentially nonexistent. One of the main issues surrounding the convergence of print and online media centers on copyright. The application of copyright laws has become harder to enforce, let alone merely quantify, as more products become ‘intangible’ via their online or virtual form. Music, for instance, is now heavily sourced via downloading files on the internet rather than being purchased physically via a clear transaction and exchange at a store. As the reigns of control become even harder it seems certain concessions and individual precedents are being made.

University of Miami’s Communications Professor Sam Terelli explains that there are four steps used to judge the need for copyright law enforcement. Firstly the nature or purpose of the product been ‘copied’ needs to be assessed. Educational or not for profit reasons will obviously be allowed more leeway than those who have a pure profit or commercial interest. The nature of the transaction is then assessed. Is the information or product being re-hashed or packaged to make money? Thirdly, the amount or substantiality is determined. If only a small paragraph from a book, for instance, is used for a book review it is likely the consequences will be minor. Lastly, the overall economic implications are weighed. The overall value or implications for the owner of the copyrighted work will take precedence. Common sense reigns supreme as there are no clear cut rules, only guidelines.

Copyright needs to be enforced enough to prevent loss of income for producers, yet it needs to have a certain elasticity to encourage free speech and the dissemination of information. Just how well this is balanced in the future will be something to follow with a keen interest.

A FINE LINE

The line is blurring. Print and online are evolving together as changes in production capabilities, and even simply consumer competence and expectations, results in more experimentation and media diversification. We have noted that citizen journalism has become a norm in the online world of news and information, but has this notion of 'user created content' and the associated multimedia options, resulted in a lack of distinction between news and opinion? Is there a lack of clarity between the subjective and opinionated content and the objective, quantifiable news that only a decade ago was essentially all we were able to consume? Like a see-saw the industry is in balance or perhaps, as trends indicate (http://www.ojr.org/ojr/stories/051208berger/), there are dominant forces emerging. The plethora of multimedia, however, lends weight to the thought that the news is becoming a form of 'info-tainment'. We have seen this trend emerge via the popularity of sites such as Youtube. The winner of the NPPA multimedia contest (nppa.org) was a perfect example of the fine line that exists between news and opinion and the lack of consensus opinion that inhibits a clear distinction. The world now revolves around the widespread adoption of constantly superseded technologies. So are 'artistry' and innovation becoming the 'latest fad' and in fact taking prominence away from 'hard news'? We want things quicker, more detailed and interesting but perhaps it is time to take a step back to reconsider the balance that needs to be established between the subjective and objective before news itself becomes an indistinct blur.

STATE OF NEWS MEDIA REPORT

There is obviously a distinct shift from print to online news media. Previously we have discussed this issue and contemplated the direction that the industry is taking. An interesting article on the Online Journalism Review (http://www.ojr.org/ojr/stories/080317niles/) takes the issue into further depth. It appears that there is not necessarily a problem with those who gather and disseminate the news. The issue of concern surrounds the economic structure or backbone of the industry; advertising. The 'State of News Media' report labels this "the decoupling of advertising and news".
Advertisers need to find a happy medium in their search for maximizing their investment. What the internet and online media has presented is an array of options for their advertising dollar. Results are harder to quantify. No longer can advertisers rely solely on identifying a linear process of 'investment-return' that was possible when print media existed in the absence of the internet. Right now it seems that there is a little uncertainty and the increased in options for production has resulted in more competition and brought about the constant restructuring of both the news content and the industry. The State of News Media report states that eight in every ten Americans now value the internet as a valuable source of information. This is increasing with every year. Never before has print media, a median where advertising has resided comfortably, encountered a competing phenomenon such as the internet. But no matter what medium is used, readership results in revenue, and as the internet slowly takes over the mantle as the chief source of information, hopefully the economic structure will become clearer.

A CHANGING OF THE GUARD?

E-commerce has opened up new avenues for both sellers and buyers. World markets have emerged, and as a result when we engage in our own personal purchasing or selling, we often subconsciously ask ourselves if print media is indeed a viable option . Such is the power and adoption now of the internet. We have already discussed how advertising in general has seen changes due to the move to online media. Realty is another industry that has also seen a shift toward online advertising. After a joint survey with Classified Intelligence, Realty times explained that “the lion’s share of advertising will follow the audience, and the audience is online." (http://www.futureofrealestatemarketing.com/times-running-out-for-print-advertising/) Although there are clearly shifts, strong arguments exist to propose that both online and print media can coexist.
Despite declining advertising revenue for newspapers, a recent five panelist debate on the topic in Manhattan declared that "print is evolving, morphing beyond the printed page. If you create content that is interesting...People are going to come." (http://publications.mediapost.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.showArticleHomePage&art_aid=34520)
The challenge for print media lies in proving value to readers; whilst competing against the breadth of more immersing multimedia tools available to online media. Print media often combats the 'threat' via linking with online sites to provide cross promotion. Additionally, technology allows advertisers to provide more 'involving' methods to get their message across. Mini Cooper used mini cut out car inserts in magazines to advertise their product (http://spluch.blogspot.com/2007/03/mini-mini-cooper.html). Cologne companies can insert samples of their product to entice trial and 3D advertisements have also been featured. As technology progresses, both online and print media are exposed to a rich array of options. Advertising is always going to be a big 'driver' of the feasibility of different medians but content remains 'king' and as long as readers can be stimulated and satisfied I'm sure both medians can continue to co-exist.

TRADE WINDS BLOWING...!?

In this digital age, it is inevitable that constant talk of print media becoming obsolete persists.
The Economist (http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=7830218) puts forth the thought that newspapers have the most to lose from the public converting to online media. Readerships are down in every major, westernized country. According to the Newspaper Association of America, the number of people employed in the industry fell by 18% between 1990 and 2004.

Already it is evident that smaller independent websites and business subsidiaries are able to overcome the obstacle of a lack of size. The digital age has essentially broken down the traditional view that money and power revolves around the 'size of the four walls' that encompass a business's operations. For instance, newspapers are typically run by giant media conglomerates and advertising has been the standard fruit bearer in terms of income. Relatively new sites such as Craig's list (Craigslist.com) threaten a newspaper's profits via their use of a 'citizen controlled' platform. Anyone can post or search jobs, items for sale, housing and even entertainment based forums. Why would any right minded person advertise in a paper when they can do the same for free, and with more of a targeted and captive audience, through a website such as this? Their are winds of change blowing as gradually the web, literally, spreads into all facets of commerce.

Although it is clear that changes are occurring, it is debatable if they are revolutionary or indeed permeable. The same characteristics that make news attractive and consumable remain as much a part of print media as their digital brethren. Newsworthiness, timeliness, proximity, clarity etc can all be accomplished via both medians and there are clearly different readerships that remain. The elderly are entrenched in 'old habits' but will the new 'generation X' consumer; one who relies on impact for their attention and immediacy for consumption, result in an eradication of the print medium? There are so many other niche websites and companies clamoring for their attention but will that necessarily, or predictably, change the concept of advertising which contributes to a newspapers viability? We will look into the 'other side of the coin'...