Before I can effectively end my self-imposed solitude and once again educate the masses, I must first define what I mean by convergence. I define it as the consolidation of power over several desired media. For example, Time Warner Cable now offers services in internet connections, phone connections, and cable television, all of which used to be run by several different companies.
The term can also be applied to technologies. The internet is a convergent technology.
Today, the internet offers all that radio, television, and newspapers can provide individually, as well as a whole lot more which none of them can do at all.
Newspapers have been around forever…okay, 1690 in the United States. They have diligently provided the news for the people who needed it. It has survived cases of libel and plagiarism, but has always come through as the desired medium for which the masses wanted their published information. Its inverted pyramid style is always formal, providing the all the information that the reader needs at the very top of the article so the reader can move quickly from one issue to the next.
Next came the radio. Although radio never truly replaced the newspaper, it also never established itself as a news medium. What news they did receive was delivered in a more informal tone. FDR realized that calm potential and spoke to the nation in his “Fireside Chats.” Even today, the little news that is delivered via news radio stations is short and conversational.
And then came television. Television changed everything, including radio and print. With moving pictures and short bursts of news, it lowered the attention span of America’s viewers. Today, the hour-long news programs offer only the briefest of clips on politics and local affairs. Today’s newspaper articles have been shortened to adapt to what America has been looking for in terms of quick news.
But what web journalism provides is an integration of all three. The inverted pyramid writing style from print, the informality of radio, and video clips and pictures of television are all incorporated to provide the internet-using masses with a fast-paced and entertainment-based news industry.
In addition to all this, the internet provides interactivity that was previously unprecedented by any such media. Blogs have formed, completely throwing away all forms of accepted media and writing style. Anybody can say anything about anything, because the internet is a non-patrolled ground for communication. The FCC can control the news of print, radio, and television, but has no jurisdiction outside of genuine news-based information.
Through technological and communicative convergence, web journalism has provided an environment where anyone can read an article, listen to a real-time radio, watch actual footage, and discuss it with their peers.
Ladies and gentlemen, the world is getting smaller with every passing minute. Take advantage of this untapped potential and be a part of this world.
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It's true that the internet can provide us with information about current event or issue. The only problem for me is when I'm trying to find articles or analyses by someone who actually knows what the hell they're talking about. With a newspaper, you expect to be getting your info from an educated person, but with the internet, anyone with a keyboard can start making shit up.
Common sense is as rare as genius. ~Emerson
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