This week we were presented with a few questions, but the one I will address here is whether we are currently watching the death of newspapers or the re-invention of the print industry?
The news and entertainment industries have faced technological changes for better or worse. While looking at media from a news perspective, I see the overlaps of news and entertainment too clearly. Those that watch news online or on television are aware as well. Fox or CNN appeal to different audiences, not because of news but of the personalities they employ that have talk shows that have a tinge of news.
Fox News Channel was the most-watched cable television network in the nation for the seventh consecutive year in 2022; according to Nielsen Media Research data, in a year, competitors saw their viewership fall (Porterfield, 2022). Fox was the top cable network in both primetime and total day viewers this year, the network said citing Nielsen data, averaging 2.3 million viewers during weekday prime time slots.
While 2.3 million viewers is a large number, it pales in comparison to USA Today newspapers. USA TODAY and USATODAY.com reach a combined seven million readers daily. USA TODAY is a leader in mobile applications, with more than 21 million downloads on mobile devices (Agilitypr.com, 2022).
News is consumed differently. The higher-cost printed newspaper is holding on but continuing to shrink. Newsrooms have significantly changed to keep up with the needs of their customers. According to a Pew Research Center survey, “More than eight-in-ten U.S. adults (86%) say they get news from a smartphone, computer or tablet “often” or “sometimes,” including 60% who say they do so often (Shearer, 2021).
I go to traditional news media sites for news, but I may see the story on Twitter or Facebook before that. News organizations push their stories on so many sites that they are hard to miss or never make it to those sites.
Information is valuable to those who own it and want to have it. Social media and traditional media are controlled and censored before they ever make it to everyday life. It is no different from writing a paper for class and editing it a few times before submitting it to the professor.
I read the base newspaper every Friday to see what was happening around the base. Once I had to produce the paper each week, I knew way more than I wanted to know. That never stopped me from reading the papers at bases I was previously assigned to. I knew someone like me was putting in much work to communicate meaningful stories to thousands of readers each week. Today's storytellers have a much harder job engaging with readers who are inundated with information 24/7.
Top 10 U.S. newspapers by circulation. Agility PR Solutions. (2022, July 15). Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://www.agilitypr.com/resources/top-media-outlets/top-10-daily-american-newspapers/
Porterfield, C. (2022, December 16). Fox News dominates cable ratings for seventh consecutive year-and gained viewers while competitors plummeted. Forbes. Retrieved January 15, 2023, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2022/12/15/fox-news-dominates-yearly-cable-ratings-for-seventh-consecutive-year/?sh=6182779d44dc
Shearer, E. (2021, January 12). More than eight-in-ten Americans get news from Digital Devices. Pew Research Center. Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/01/12/more-than-eight-in-ten-americans-get-news-from-digital-devices/
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