3. The Tools Available
To Journalists
o Twitter
o Facebook
o Blogs
o Forums
o Discussion Boards
o Chats
o Internet Radio
o Podcasts
o RSS
4. What is Convergence?
Convergence is serving the customers with
Multiple channels making use of the basic
raw material which in our case is (mostly)
news and current information.
– Ari Valjakka, editor-in-chief of Turan Sanomat, Finland
Convergence is generally seen in terms
of increasing co-operation and collaboration
between formerly distinct media newsrooms.
- Mark Deuze, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Internet
Web Site
Newspaper
Outlet
Broadcast
Outlet
“
“
”
”
Definitions: Stephen Quinn, Convergent Journalism: The Fundamentals of Multimedia Reporting (2009), Page 8.
Flowchart: Kenneth C. Killebrew, Managing Media Convergence: Pathways to Journalistic Co-operation (2005), Page 41.
5. Convergence –
Threat or Opportunity?
o Multi-skilled journalists
o Employability
o Reduce costs
o Increases productivity
o Increases readership
o Specialists
o Technophobes
http://www.flickr.com/photos/troshy/3213400098/sizes/z/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/curtiskennington/3642074604/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/36000391@N07/4446929018/
10. The Digital Newsroom
- An Opportunity
Journalists know that they need to be truthful
and can be trusted.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbonnyc/3438245123/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/80375783@N00/3467073121/
14. 2
31
Yes No
Are you willing to pay for
news online?Yes and No - with the advent of handheld
devices that can display online news it's
easier to get news with an investment into
one device, however newspapers are
cheaper in the short term and usually a lot
more localised and focused.
Is there still a market
for newspapers?
“
”
The modern day consumer has ultimate ease of access to news from a range of sources via direct RSS feeds to their computer or mobile phone. The news medium is fast paced and constantly being updated to keep in trend with the audience. Because of this, news organisations are exploring new techniques to keep up with changing consumer tastes.
News consumers have a range of choice available to them on a variation of platforms. An online article can now go hand in hand with video footage and sound bytes to give a more rounded view of the story.
The idea of free news is something we have heard a lot about in the past few years and that the decline in readership and popularity of newspapers has lead to a fall in newspaper prices and their constant fight for survival within the digitally driven climate.
The harsh irony is that print journalism has, in fact, prospered with the advance in technology in terms of colour printing, efficiency and sophistication but at the same time the invention of the internet and the idea of social networking and citizen journalism hindered the medium.
But if similar content can be found for free on the internet, will people still be willing to pay for news, whether that be in the form of online paywalls or newspapers.
We constructed a survey to determine trends in how people access news. We discovered that people primarily get their news online because they think its cheaper and more convenient. We found out that the majority of people access news at least once a day.
However we found that people felt that there will always be a market for newspapers because not everyone may own or know how to use computer devices, or alternatively buying newspapers has become a force of habit. We discovered that the majority of people were not willing to pay for their news online. Critics predicted that The Times’ pay wall would result in a 90% fall in readership and online traffic.
Although there are both benefits and drawbacks, we feel that overall the Digital Newsroom is an opportunity. News can reach greater audiences via social networking sites such as Twitter and blogs. Journalists become multi skilled therefore more employable. User generated content and crowdsourcing allows for more community involvement and journalists can use this to their advantage. A digital newsroom also means that aspiring journalists have a head start in terms of knowing how to use modern technology.