COM125 WEEK2

From the time I woke up, I have been waiting to read the newspaers. However, my brother does not seem to have finished reading them. Unless he finishes, I cannot start reading them. That is when I remembered that I shall simply go online to get my daily dose of the world events.

Online newspapers set in motion in the 1990s. An awareness of the internet and the strong desire for competition led to the strong investment in staffing for web newspapers. As time progressed, it has become impossible to not find a daily newspaper in the 21st century that does not have or share a website. USA, Singapore, Britain and India are just examples of a few countries that have online newspapers.

Usually, the soft-copy newspapers are much like the hard-copy newspapers. There are instant updates, opportunities for instantaneous community discussions on important information, classified ads, home entertainment and not forgetting obituaries. Web newspapers are not like blogs and so have to abide by the same legalities as their sister publications do. Online news have become so prevalent that even news reporters are now trained to write in the concise manner necessary for the internet news pages and to shoot videos.


Over the years, online newspapers have become indispensable to many out there. With more countries starting the websites for their newspapers, the internet is influenced to also become indispensable for this cause. The Internet has created opportunities for widespread electronic delivery of news at a time when print delivery methods are becoming increasingly less profitable and losing readers. There has been a steady decline in the readership among teenagers. Currently only 52 percent of 18 to 24 year olds read the daily newspapers as compared to the 71 percent in the 1990s.

Furthermore, with more people working overseas, the global expansion of online news allows them to get fresh news form their country’s online newspaper site. This allows the individual to be updated and to keep track of the events in his or her country. News online is also being valued as the most accurate form of information.

One of the major benefits of online news is that users of the internet can gain different perspectives on news. Users are no longer dependent on their traditional sources to receive their news, but can now reach news services around the world. The global accessibility and rapid availability of news may result in differing opinions about events. Local biases in reporting may now be quickly offset with information from different sources at a relatively low cost. The internet can also allow users to select the news they want see, presented in the format and timing of their choice. Some may argue that the television is as good as this channel. Nevertheless, even though there is an option of switching channels, viewers get to only see the same information presented in a similar style.

The internet is also viewed in a negative light as only a minimum number of people have claimed to have made money from their newspaper sites in the year 2006. This is due to the free subscription. On the other hand, executives are considering new methods of gaining revenue without charging subscription. However, one of the exceptions would be The Nando Times of North Carolina which has 2,500 paid subscribers on the internet.

As these online newspaper sites upgrade, they also advance the internet’s functions and abilities. For instance, there are some web based newspapers being produced as only online publications. Therefore, there will be no hard-copies. This further makes the internet as the only source of information for such media. Furthermore, in the future, it is expected that electronic newspapers will be replacing hard-copy printed paper through electronic paper. The internet will be made to have flexible systems for multiple and remote authoring, as well as better methods for storing, organizing, and retrieving information. Users can also have the ability to retrieve selected objects such as sound files, video, and text from a news database. There are also expected continuous Improvements in online interactive multimedia which will increase the dramatic effects and impression of news and result in new forms of electronic advertising.

The Internet can be viewed as both an opportunity and a threat to the news industry. However, not only are there technology barriers that news organizations need to overcome to deliver news electronically, but there are also problems of employee attitudes toward new technologies and resistance to change. Nevertheless there is no doubt that they online news have boosted the internet’s usage by millions all over the world.

REFERENCES:

Everett, V. 1994. "U.S. Newspapers Online," Database, October/November, pp. 14–25.

History of the Internet. (2006, August 20). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 14.30, January 25, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_the_Internet&oldid=70771572