Farewell News Papers. Hello technology
Newspapers did not begin declining with the rise of the Internet, many other factors have played a part as well. The popularity of newspapers seemed to significantly diminish between 1980 and 1995; this is actually before the age of the Internet. There has been a decline in revenue for the newspaper industry. Many say it is because of the loss of readers and the loss of advertisement. The loss of readers leads to the loss of ads. Because of things like Craigslist, which makes advertising a lot cheaper, people are choosing the cheaper way. And because advertisers know where the readers have gone, why would they continue paying for not-as-useful advertisement? Papers being produced also created more loss because so much money was going into the business while fewer were buying.
Technologically, the world has become very digital media savvy, obviously. A lot of people get their news from the Internet or by simply watching the local news on TV. I even find myself tuning in to the news on radio in the mornings on my way to school. Never do I think to myself, “Oh, let me grab a newspaper.” Because the news is so readily available at our fingertips, we don’t really have the urge to go out and buy some print with the news on it. It would be somewhat redundant. Yes, the papers do offer some very local stories that are not often presented on the local TV news or online newsfeeds, but you can easily learn about what’s going on through Facebook. That is actually where I learn about a lot of local current events.
In a response to these changes, a lot of newspapers have taken their work to the Internet and have become online newspapers. For some, the response has been successful. My neighbor, an older lady was once subscribed to our city’s newspaper, The Akron Beacon Journal. One day I needed the newspaper for a school assignment, and I asked to use her’s. I was surprised when she informed me that she was no longer subscribed to the paper because she now reads it online. So perhaps even the older generations are realizing papers could be a thing of the past, and online is where it’s at. Since I am a witness to one unlikely converter, I know there must be many more.
http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2014/jun/13/internet-newspapers