The Impact of the Internet on Traditional News Media - Research Paper Example

The Impact of the Internet on Traditional News Media ………. Course……….. Date of submission………….. Absract The impact of internet on TV and print media is very obvious when we are attempting a close observation of modern trends in news media. The internet communication system altered the faces of modern news papers and it has created a remarkable impact on almost every field of journalist venture. Here is an attempt to analyze the changes brought about by the advent of internet in the field of TV and print media. Introduction The widespread use of internet has drastically changed the conventions of different news media. The cyber world has hastened the pace and spread of news in an amazing manner which downgraded even the scope of scoops. The advent of internet has thus marked a lot of changes in news media and subverted even the concepts of news upside down. The impact of internet on TV and Print media The vast and ever spreading world of cyber space contributed a lot to the growth of news media and triggered a revolution in the field of communication system. For a journalist, let him associate with either print media or visual media, internet is a powerful source to collect news. In olden days, as we know, the exchange of messages was carried out by the so-called messengers. Later postal system came into exist which made the communication system a little bit comfortable to share something between two people of different corners. The inventions of telegraph and wireless technological system opened the new vistas of exposition and exchange. In modern epoch, for any person who wants to know more about a topic or a news event can easily find out the detailed information by logging on websites. Thus, internet is undoubtedly a good source of news for both the reader and the journalist. In olden days the prime source of news for the newspapers was only the reporters deployed in the different places. The quick access into the cyber world and its updating facility in every second is one of the prominent features of online news portals. This has created a lot of changes in mass media by compelling the media persons to broadcast breaking news in visual media because the world is changing rapidly and the people are eager to know about those changes in the world. The different media across the globe compete each other in providing latest information for its readers/viewers keeping vigil on each and every change in the world. All the TV channels and print media keep their own website, on which, they publish breaking news or news flash. As Seema Shrikande maintains in her essay titled Internet Impact on Media, a “major influence of internet has been to remove geographical limits on the reach of media outlets and no longer are news media restricted to one city or region”…(Shrikande,Seema- http://www.omnilogos.com/2011/06/14/internet-impact-on-media). Even local news papers have their online editions and they are available to the readers in every corner of the world. Again this feature also, will mount pressure on the newspaper persons as they have to survive in the world of competition. So they are supposed to attract their readers by means of captivating designs, swift covering of news events, providing arresting captions etc., to compete in international level. All these are common features of any local newspaper of vernacular languages. The ever spreading and changing nature of cyber world has marked such changes even in the matter of local news papers. The popularity of the social network sites like Facebook opened up new horizons of public opinion tools. In many Facebook posts, media and its way of reporting are of serious concern. The use of FB posts will definitely affects the quality and objectivity news media as common man can easily put their comments on even very big news channels and they can share it instantly among the friends. Before the advent of internet system, the people were not able to weigh and value of a news event beyond the account of newspapers. But nowadays, the objectivity and reliability of reporting are compared very easily through Facebook pages and any erroneous facts would be highlighted and it would be shared by all the readers across the world. Of course, it will tarnish the image of big names in the field of mass media. Personalization is a remarkable feature of modern communication system which helps the readers or viewers to make their own choice on the basis of their own interests. Everyone can log on to various websites and choose from the news items as per one’s own interest. The news media has now categorized the news items such as national, international, arts, music sports and so forth. It is certain that such kinds of design in newspapers are mainly because of the impact of internet. As soon as the internet communication facility was set up, the experts opined that it was the end of print media and other conventional news media. The altercations over death of reading and newspapers are still ongoing. But it is clear that newspapers and television channels occupy a vast space of our daily routine in spite of tremendous changes in modern life style brought about by internet facility. "We expect the cycle to move back into more positive territory. And we remain convinced that newspapers, as printed products, will remain a powerful medium for many years to come", the Guardian news paper quotes Ms. Bailey (http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/jan/09/mirror.digitalmedia). Conclusion To conclude, although cyber world has not overthrown the conventional news media, it has created remarkable changes in almost every field of journalism. Internet has made tremendous impact on the designs of newspaper and the concept of news and it boosted up the quality and objectivity of news reporting. The fast spreading of news all over the world is undoubtedly a dominant feature of the internet impact. References Shrikhande,S. Internet Impact on News media .Retrievedfrom http://www.omnilogos.com/2011/06/14/internet-impact-on-media/ The Guardian. Impact of Internet over stated, says Bailely retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/jan/09/mirror.digitalmedia In the words of authors like Goldschmidt and Arthur , “the accession of Selim II in 1556 and the defeat of the ottoman navy at Lepanto in 1571 are commonly identified as the first signs of its decline” (Goldschmidt Jr., Arthur 2009 p 140). The historians speak about its decline in terms of the military reasons. Compared to previous Muslim states, the Ottomans had only one army and it was led by Sulthan himself or his authorized deputy. So, it was difficult for them to campaign attack on more than one adversary at a time. To add their military woe, ottomans lagged behind the western power in war weaponry, techniques and training. At last, they had to sign the treaty of Karlowitz by 1699, ceding the control of Hungary to Hubsburg Empire. It showed that they were in defensive mood and it marked almost the end of the Ottoman surge. The economic factors also led to the rapid and gradual downfall of the Ottomans. The European discovery of new sea-routes around Africa to the interior fabulous riches of Asia helped the westerners to turn out to be the main traders of the region without the assistance of any intermediate. It enhanced the troubles of the Ottoman economy and their artisans and merchants faced very tough competition in business. Moreover exorbitant tax rates and overpopulation in rural regions compelled the peasants to abandon their peasantry and thus they turned out to be the vagabonds and brigands which resulted in further impoverishment of their economy. The rise of western notion of nationalism and divisive forces within themselves are the social background that speeded up the overthrow of the Ottomans. The Western legacy of medieval Islamic Civilization West owes to Medieval Islamic period for its discoveries and prosperous growth of science and technology. In the field of mathematics, algebra, algorithm (logarithm), arithmetic, calculus, geometry, trigonometry, the decimal system etc. are of basically Islamic contribution and West owes to Arabian Scholars for today’s flourishing growth of almost every field of knowledge. Mohammad al-Khawarizmi (780-850), Abu Arrayhan al-Biruni (973-1048), Naseer al-Din at-Tusi (1201-1274) are some of the scientists of the medieval age and their contributions were in different fields like mathematics, astronomy, medicine, pharmacology, chemistry, physics etc. The great Persian Muslim scientist Abu Bakr al-Razi (865-925) a pioneering physician, was the first to describe papillary reflexes; gave the worlds first account of smallpox and measles; discovered the contagious characters of diseases; and differentiated among colic pain, kidney-stone pain, and the pains of the ileums. The etymological analysis of the word chemistry can be traced back to the Arabic word alchemy or al-Keemya itself shows the inextricable relationship between the medieval period of Islamic civilization and the modern scientific discovery of West. These are some of the examples to elucidate the Western obligation toward the Islamic civilization of the medieval period. Conclusion Read More