Weekly News 7/8

What impact will adblockers have on the #media industry?

• Ad blockers are wreaking havoc with the online revenue of newspapers, yet some groups continue to throw money around to acquire online rivals. What happens when boom turns to bust?
• More than that, Facebook and the social mob are becoming a news hub of their own for hundreds of millions of (often young) users – potentially eclipsing the value of discrete news websites. One damned thing as well as another.

How live video on Periscope helped 'get inside' the Syrian refugees story

The negative side of coverage of the Syrian crisis has been dehumanising references to “swarms” of refugees, and an emphasis on numbers rather than people.

However, one journalist for German newspaper Bild has found a way to use his smartphone to help those people tell their stories direct to readers. Or rather viewers.

Build the wall analysis

Section summary

1) This section talks briefly about the death of journalism and why this is happening.

2) This segment talks about how the public should be paying for news i.e. online news, helping bring revenue.

Conclusion Summary-

Overall the article goes in real depth about the death of journalism and what could be done to help journalism survive through this advanced technology world with internet and tools to access news. The article talks about how online news content need to be put behind a 'pay wall' which then ensures the survival of journalism. It also discusses the way that online content is easily accessible for the public. This means people can easily access exclusive news through the internet i.e the guardian online. This article believes that if a site such as the guardian online places a pay wall in front of the site giving people news but for a paid amount then the journalism will slowly regain its power and survive through todays advancement.

This idea of a pay wall will bring a newspaper industry such as the guardian revenue which will help them distribute a pay to their journalists. This may seem like a good idea because it shows clearly how it may help newspaper businesses regain their position in the news world.

My opinion

Personally,I don't agree with newspapers needing to put online content behind a pay wall, this is because of the new and digital media impact, news can be accessed from anywhere across the world and from different sources regardless of the pay wall. This means the pay wall will not have much of an impact on whether or not people access that news. This means the pay wall will not be able to function effectively because it's purpose to create revenue from the public will not be earned.

Newspapers: The effect of online technology

Tasks-

1) Do you agree with James Murdoch that the BBC should not be allowed to provide free news online? Why?

I agree with Murdoch to an extent. This is because the BBC is a powerful source in British news and by the BBC institution providing free news for the public this disadvantages other institutions but also the newspaper industry. However, I do believe that an institution such as the BBC's success relies on the fact that the news they provide is free. This may mean if they choose to charge the public for news this may cause them to decline. The public rely on free news heavily because the world is changing and people are now able to gain information for cheaper or even for free at times which has caused them to become reliant on this.


2) Was Rupert Murdoch right to put his news content (The Times, The Sun) behind a paywall?

I think that Murdoch was right to put a pay wall in his content because the news that the sun and the times provide exclusive news that the public should pay for. This is because the costs of journalism and website content is costly for the company and by putting a pay wall this may help them regain some revenues to help them make profits. However, I do not know if it was a smart decision because the news that these institutions provide is already out there on the web and is easily accessible on other websites and even social media. This makes the sun and times decline in viewers because their information and news isn't valued as much considering it is accessible on other sites. 

3) Choose a comment from below the Times paywall article - one that argues in favour of the paywall and one that argues against. Copy a quote from each and explain which YOU agree with and why.

"It is so ridiculous if these mainstream newspapers believe that they can "force readership of fee-based news. One can get the same "news" for free almost anywhere on the internet. I'd take a hint from the alternative free weeklies that survive just off their local advertising. I don't think anyone would read them otherwise. These papers are full of paid advertising. The fee model will never work."

I agree with this comment because the article doesn't take into consideration the access of news through the internet. Even if there is pay wall that is applied people will still manage to get the same news for free which will not benefit Murdoch's institutions because they may lose their audience due to this 'pay wall'.

4) Is there any hope for the newspaper industry or will it eventually die out? Provide a detailed response to this question explaining and justifying your opinion.

I personally think that the chances of survival of newspapers is every slim. This is because the world is advancing and the need for journalists isn't necessary. Technology has made the need for newspapers very slim because it has made accessing news more convenient for the public. News now can be consumed through smartphones, social media and the internet this has made it much easier for the public to access news 'on the go' and most importantly for free. The older generation may prefer a print version of news but as time goes on the younger generation will become the older generation and their routine of checking news through the internet will become of the norm. Newspapers may survive if they are able to come up with an idea to regain their audience. However, if the BBC and other news institutions choose to put a pay wall behind their content then this may play a role in their survival. If this happens then the public may consider switching to the traditional way of consuming news and this is through print. 

"The world is changing and newspapers need to adapt to that." This is a quote from Rupert Murdoch about newspapers being able to adapt to the changes occurring in the media and the world. Newspapers need to realise that technology is constantly increasing and making new methods for people to access news and newspapers need to provide something new and different to ensure that they gain sales and recline back up to help print survive through an advancing ever changing world. If the print industry is able to deliver a service such as this then their survival is bound to happen and may allow print to exist for another 100 years or so.  

Weekly news 5/6

BBC sees danger of losing young viewers distracted by devices

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/oct/05/bbc-sees-danger-of-losing-young-viewers-distracted-by-devices?CMP=twt_a-media_b-gdnmedia

This an article from the guardian about how the BBC is worried and sees danger of losing their younger viewers due to mobile and other devices of technology distracting them away from the TV platform. The guardian goes into more depth about the BBC's concern and how smartphones have caused youth to drift away from TV and gain their information, entertainment etc from the internet and social media.

In my opinion I see the concern of the BBC and I completely agree with them in terms of them having a concern about this. The new modern technology has caused youth to get their information from online sites. However the BBC have a site and an app for their younger viewers so the concern can be overcome because the youth can still be in touch with the BBC through modern technology.

What impact will adblockers have on the media industry?

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/oct/04/eclipse-threatens-newspaper-giants-buying-digital-rivals

This is another article from the guardian talking about how ad blockers have an impact on the media industry. The article speaks about how ad blockers stop some companies or businesses making revenues because ad blockers block adverts being advertised to consumers. Personally, I think ad blockers may put many businesses out of the chance of advertising their service due to adverts being blocked by this.

The Future Of Newspapaers

The future of newspapers

Read this article from the Economist on the future of newspapers.

On your blog, write a paragraph summarising the argument the article makes. Then answer the following question: 


Do you agree with its view that it is ‘a cause for concern, but not for panic’?


"Philip Meyer calculates that the first quarter of 2043 will be the moment when newsprint dies in America as the last exhausted reader tosses aside the last crumpled edition."The article is a very interesting one and speaks about how newspapers are declining over the years and how sales have decreased causing 'the death' of newspapers. It also looks at how younger people are getting their news online from social media, online articles etc. One man names Philip Meyer made a prediction that by 2043 newspapers will completely die out and will not be used as a way of gaining global and local information. Instead news will be received through the online process which may include social media or news sites such as the BBC.


I completely agree with article in terms that this is a cause for concern but not necessarily for panic. This is because the traditional way of gaining news is through print and the fact that this is dying out is a concern. However I disagree on the other hand because technology is advancing and if there is an easier more convenient way of getting news then that should be the publics main focus. This was inevitable because everything was bound to advance over the years to make everything easier for people.