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.