Community Newspapers - Essay Example

Introduction There are rising concerns that the internet is slowly replacing conventional news sources. However, this does not undermine the fact that there are still some devoted newspaper readers. Consequently, there is a need to examine why some people still depend upon this form of media for their information. The essay will also evaluate whether community newspapers are still viable toady and in the future. Main research problem The internet is vast source of information. Individuals can access diverse and detailed pieces of writing at the touch of a button. Television and other audio visual news sources are also very crucial in the process of disseminating information as explained by Schatzman and Strauss, (1973, p 34 ) This has led to numerous questions about the relevance of newspapers and this is especially with regard to community newspapers. Some people believe that community newspapers are slowly but surely loosing their role as main integral centers in the community. Community newspapers have been a central part of the US tradition. They have been attributed with the role of making neighborhoods in the more informed and more knowledgeable about their surroundings. They were also known as symbols of society's democratic nature. This was especially because of the fact that there could understand the goings on within their local community and this empowered them to make contributions to their future in the industry. Additionally, some people believe that communities become communities as a result of the information that they shared between themselves. However, this does not undermine the fact that there were numerous problems that such community newspapers encounter. For instance, circulation is a major challenge thus prompting most of them to turn to hidden sources for funding. For instance, it is quite common to her of some political groups sponsoring a certain community newspapers. Community newspapers faced major challenges as societies became more centralized. This meant that smaller communities were not receiving as much attention as they should and consequently, most of them were running out of finances to continue with the operations. These were all problems highlighted as far back as the seventies but they still continue to plague most community newspapers today. In relation to the above concerns, Beisner, (2005, p 3) explains that there are also some hurdles in the process of operation. For instance, adoption of technologies may not always be a welcome idea for most editors and publishers. Secondly, it may be difficult to survive as a community newspaper given the fact that most of other newspapers re making alliances and mergers with other companies. The overall effect of such an approach is that community newspapers begin loosing their sense of independence. Additionally, they are required to keep their 'eye on the ball' which means that most of them may have to forego their traditional pursuits in order to fulfill financial goals set by their mother company. In light of all these problems facing the community newspaper industry, one is left asking whether there is really any need for their existence. With so many other alternatives in the market today, one is left wondering whether there re still some people who value community newspapers. It is also important to examine the reasons behind this interest and why those people are not choosing other form of media to get their daily news. Extent of the problem Some people have asserted that community newspapers are only read by traditional or old people. They argue that there is no more room for community newspapers in today's fast paced world. Consequently, it is necessary to validate this claim by giving evidence of what kind of people read community newspapers. It is also necessary to give examples of some exclusive features present in community newspapers which cannot be found in other sources of information especially the internet. Critics assert that community newspapers would not be missed at all if they were eliminated. Others also claim that community newspapers reach a very small portion of the population and that there were relatively small market segments for this product. Similarly, some people feel that if there very few homes that actually consider community newspapers as a priority for them. As it can be seen there are so many negative perceptions about community newspapers. This means that any research conducted in this sector needs to confirm these perceptions or to nullify them altogether as elaborated by Schatzman and Strauss (1973, p 34) Lastly, some people argue that community newspapers are quite ineffective in the marketing process. They assert that advertisement placed in those papers may not necessarily bring out the desired effects. Again, this is an issue that needs to be researched and possible solutions suggested at the en of the research. Population-target population versus accessible population Because the neighborhood to be examined is made up of thousands of individuals, it may be impractical to ask each and every member of the neighborhood about their views concerning community newspapers. Some of these impracticalities can be classified under three main areas i.e. Money Time Resources It is therefore necessary to look for a representative population through sampling techniques. Before examining these details, it is necessary to define certain crucial terms in the process. A target population is the total population that posses common characteristics. For instance, if this was a clinical research, the target population would be defined as all the people with cerebral palsy in the United States. On the other hand, the accessible population is a sort of subset of the target population. This is defined as a narrower definition of the population to be examined in a research program. Accessible populations are usually determined on the basis of geographical constraints; interferences that group can bring o the research findings and many other factors. Using the example mentioned above about a clinical research, it would be necessary to limit the sample to children below the ages of fourteen because causes of the disease would be different form other age groups as explained by Dominowski (1980, p 124). For this particular research, the target population is made up of all the people who read community newspapers. The accessible population in this case will be community newspaper readers located in a particular neighborhood. As it can be seen the research will not exclude nay persons based on their age and/ or their gender. This is because such factors will be analyzed and considered during the results manipulation phase. However, representative samples will need to be collected because one cannot cover the entire neighborhood. Therefore the method of sampling that will be use on the accessible population is simple sampling. Here, respondents are chosen using certain figures in order to minimize bias. Since houses in this neighborhood are aligned geometrically, the first respondent will be chosen randomly through a table containing numbers from one to the last number. The last number represents the total number of houses found in the neighborhood. Thereafter, a pencil will thrown roughly onto the table and the first number its tip touches will be the first house to be chosen. Then the third house form this will be chosen on the left and also the third house on the right. This procedure will continue until all the houses are completed. Goals and objectives The research objectives are a follows 1) to examine why people read community newspapers 2) to examine the benefits brought about by community newspapers 3) to examine the extent of readership through demographics and numbers Research question Given the fact that there still considerable numbers of people still devoted to community newspapers, the research will attempt to authenticate the idea that community newspapers are fundamental to the life of the community. Therefore the research question that this paper will attempt to answer is 'Do community newspapers still have a unique position in local media'' The above mentioned research question will entail examining the detail involved in the examination of the value and nature of readership of community newspapers. It will unravel the kind of people who read community services and what portion of this group represents the entire population. It will also attempt to bring out the nature of information that people find appealing in community services and what is unique to this form of media. Theoretical approach The research will be conducted through a qualitative method know a structured interview. The reason why this form of research collection was chosen was that it allows the respondents to give their own kind of answers without fear of restraint. Dominowski (1980, p 124) adds that it gives the researcher flexibility to ask a number of questions. Also, they can asses the accuracy of the answer since they can see the respondent directly. Interviewers are given the chance to elaborate on some ambiguous questions. However, this method of data collection also has its disadvantages. For instance, it takes up a lot of time, especially when some respondents choose to deviate way from the main topic. Besides, there is room for bias since the respondent is visible. Interviews increase the chances of inconsistencies. Also, analyzing varying data can be difficult especially if these variations are too many. Lastly, the interviewee solely depends upon his ability to recall and this may be subject to error. Additionally, they may give wrong information jut so that they can please the researcher Research design The research will be conducted within a period of three days. Such a short period of time was chosen because the neighborhood is not too large. Besides, the questions to be addressed within the surveys are quite straight forward and will not take too much time. It should however be noted, that there may be some ethical issues that need to be incorporated. For instance, some respondents may not be willing to take part in the research as explained by Wiggins, (1989, p 703-704). Since it will be done on a wiling interviewer-wiling interviewee basis, then such respondents cannot contribute to the research and may reduce the accuracy of the results by making the sample size smaller. It is well known that the larger the sample size, the less the chances of bias. The questions to be asked will be directly linked to the research objectives. Here are some examples What is your age', Do you read community newspapers', What unique features can be found in this information source that cannot be found in other media sources', Would you miss the community newspaper if it was removed', do you think that the paper affects your purchases through its advertisements' What role do community newspapers play in the community's lives' All responses will be recorded in order to come up with suitable answers to the research questions. Thereafter, they will be tallied and overall results tabulated. These will then be presented in a mathematical form, and sound conclusions made from them. Data collection-methods and techniques, data analysis and findings Data was collected through interviews; pros and cons of the method were examined earlier. Data analysis was done through a tallying process as explained by Wiggins, (1989, p 703-704). First of all, the percentage of respondents who read community newspaper was established by finding the ratio of those who affirmed the second question in the interview about their readership of community newspapers. Thereafter, reasons for reading community newspapers were placed in list. The most common reason were considered and ranked according to occurrence. The most common reasons were ranked in ascending order then the first five were chosen. Additionally, answers were also elaborated on the basis of respondent's ages. This is in order to establish which age groups most readers lie. Thereafter, the overall effects of community newspapers were also analyzed through tallying the most common responses and ranking them in that order. The research findings were as follows; Most of the respondents still read community newspapers. It was found that a whooping seventy three percent were daily readers. While a shocking eight percent were irregular readers but this does not undermine the fact that they still read the newspapers. Ages were also analyzed and it was found that contrary to popular belief, not all community readers were old. Actually, majority of the respondents were between the ages of twenty three and forty seven. The most common reason that people gave about why they still read community newspapers was that it gave them a sense of communality. They asserted that this was part of their tradition and would therefore be a very difficult habit to get rid of. It should also be noted that the respondents who gave this response were equally represented in all age groups. This reason took up 43% of the answers. The second most popular reason (21%) was that community newspapers had information that could not be found in other locations. For instance some asserted that local news could only be found there while other cited obituaries as unique. Other people felt that community newspapers gave them the flexibility that other sources such as the internet could. (13%) This meant that they can walk with their newspapers wherever they desire without worrying about inconvenience. About five percent of the respondents did not like staring at a computer screen for their news sources. Another seven percent felt that it was inconvenient to search through the internet because it was too diverse. The remaining percentage felt that the quality of professionalism is quite high in community newspapers and that was why they were quality readers. When respondents were asked about the effect that community newspapers have had on their lives, most of them cited the fact that the community newspaper has helped them to become more informed. (60%) others have asserted that it has made their neighborhood closer (27%) because they now share common information. Others have asserted that they have received information about certain businesses in their community and this encouraged them to buy the item being sold (13%). This last response answers the question on marketability of community newspapers. Conclusion The research found that most people who read community newspapers are not necessarily old. The most common reason for doing this was because it was part of their tradition while others felt that it had unique features such as local news. Lastly, the research also revealed that most people felt that community newspapers united them and that it was still relevant. Reference: Schatzman, L., and Strauss, A.L. (1973): Field Research. Englewood Cliffs; Prentice-Hall, p 34 Wiggins, G. (1989): A True Test: Toward More Authentic and Equitable Assessment. Phi Delta Kappan, May, p 703-704 Dominowski L. (1980): Research methods; New Jersey: Prentice Hall, p 124 Isaac, M. (1990): Handbook in research and evaluation, 2nd ed. San Diego: Edits Publishers, p 189. Beisner, J. (2005): The role of community newspapers as promotional tools and problems therein; Institute for rural journalism and community issues, p 3 Read More