take one: The Future of News

Former Washington Post publisher Philip Graham called newspapers “the first rough draft of history,” but for hundreds of years, journalism has been more than that, shaping the country’s early history.

Despite the reports that the newspaper industry is dying, new technology has not replaced newspapers. With the recent and unprecedented technological boom that has brought about infinite forms of “new media,” newspaper circulation and readership continues to decrease.

However, the emergence of the Internet is not the first hurdle for newspapers to endure. The invention of radio and television introduced new mediums for the news to be delivered, and though both have had negative impacts on newspapers, neither has replaced it.

The Internet may be more efficient—websites can provide instant information and Internet news is free, whereas newspaper subscriptions cost the customer. Still, the majority people prefer to read the newspaper in print form, and enjoy reading the paper in the morning with breakfast or just to relax.

Of course, coming from a newspaper family, I may be biased.

Two weeks ago, I had just moved into my new apartment. I woke up, got a bowl of cereal, and sat down—only to realize I had nothing to do. Being an avid newspaper reader practically since I could read, this void of not having a newspaper in the morning was startling. Freshman and sophomore year in college I lived in dorm-style buildings, where newspaper access was very limited. I resorted to the online version, catching up on local Sacramento news through The Sacramento Bee, and then scanning T he LA Times website.

I thought this was sufficient—until I went home for the summer and truly appreciated the alliteration “daily doorstep delivery.” By the second week of summer I was back in my routine; I started with the Scene (or Lifestyle) Section, read the cover stories, criticized the advice Jeanne Phillips in “Dear Abby” (or even worse, Carolyn Hax) gave, then quickly read through my favorite comics (“Zits,” “Doonesbury,” “Dilbert,” “F Minus,” and “Bizarro”—almost always in that order). Depending on the amount of time I had before work—and what section my sister was reading—I read Names and Faces (to catch up on the celeb gossip, obviously) and maybe skimmed sports. But in the afternoon or later at night, I would pour over each section, cover to cover. Our dinner conversations frequently began, “Did you see the story about…” and I contributed without question.

Needless to say, when I came back to school, I realized that I was taking the convenience of newspapers for granted. While sitting in my apartment during the week before classes started, I realized all I wanted to do was read the newspaper. I went on a search through the shopping center near campus, only to be given most of The LA Times by a man who overheard my complaining and only wanted the sports section.

I brought the paper back to my apartment, only to be met by my roommate, a Communications major, who quickly said, “Oh, Katie, one of the only few newspaper readers these days.” Mildly offended, I quickly retorted that, while newspaper profits are certainly decreasing, broadcast news is decreasing at an equal, if not more substantial, rate. Amid reports that newspapers will be completely out of business soon, relatively no notice is paid to startlingly similar problems facing television news. As audiences age and new media and the Internet become increasingly prevalent, evening news shows have lost over half their viewers in less than 30 years, with audiences continuing to dwindle.

While newspapers cover all aspects of news (local, national, and international), television news is increasingly replacing “hard news” with celebrity news and human interest stories. Both television stations and FM radio stations summarize newspaper stories in their own news briefs.

No media source can achieve the completeness or complexity of a newspaper, and no media source will be able to replace it.

I found this video celebrating The McClatchy Company’s 150^th anniversary. While the video summarizes McClatchy’s history as a company, the first two and a half minutes have great photography and perfect quotes that, at least I believe, summarize journalism. My personal favorite: “Newspapers are the place where the whole world comes together.”