media podcast

The podcast discusses the results of a survey about the importance of newspapers in the age of digital media. Online news is convenient and accessible from anywhere, updated in real time, and relies on digital advertising. It has lower production costs and is more sustainable. Phasing out newspapers would not affect the younger generation who are accustomed to online media. Overall, the podcast suggests that digital media is taking over and newspapers may become obsolete. Hello and welcome to the Media and Cultural Studies Podcast. My name is Stephen. I'm Katie. I'm Ava. And I'm Sean. And today we're discussing the results from the Media Practices and Values Survey. And the question we're discussing is, It doesn't really matter if newspapers disappear, media is taking over forms. It is an interesting point to me as it was a very narrow margin between debris and disarray. However, in Nick Coltrane's Media Why It Matters, he suggests that the decay of the media is public sphere. With the rise of smartphones and social media, is this the case for newspapers? I definitely do agree with that. I've heard a great thing about online news that it can be accessed from almost anywhere, as long as you have a decent enough internet connection. This means people can stay updated on news events 24-7, from their computers, phones or any type of device. Online news articles are also usually updated in real time, allowing people to get the latest information as soon as it becomes available to them, rather than waiting for newspapers, which are printed on a daily basis. This makes it highly convenient for readers. As positive as online news is, it does rely heavily on digital advertising, though, which I know Sean, you were talking about. I was speaking earlier about how advertising expenses for online news is usually a lot more cost effective than it is for physical newspapers, this is because online data allows for better targeting and measurement among audiences, which results in an improvement on investment, or return on investment. Speaking of investment and cost, this also ties into my next point about how digital news has much less production costs than physical newspapers. The fact that it's online completely removes the need for print and distribution almost altogether. Submerging archives and online for digital news is also a lot more efficient and accessible to store for physical newspapers. This also requires more manpower to manage. It's not only more cost effective, but also benefits advertising effectiveness, overall convenience, as well as sustainability. Speaking of sustainability, I think it's better that more people choose the internet as their news resource because of the impact that newspapers have on the environment. If people were consistently recycling the papers, then certainly it would just end up adding to the waste dump and landfills emitting the greenest gas. With climate change being such a big issue nowadays, I think the internet is definitely a safer and more environmentally friendly option. The carbon footprint would amount to less if you browse the internet for news, compared to those who buy and read newspapers. Because not only does the carbon footprint depend on newspaper production, printing and transport, but the waste created by it as well. And if the same news is available online, I'd argue that newspaper sites, for cost reasons and social media, are better to the environment than actual physical newspapers. Interesting points. And then just on those points, just a couple of questions. Are you subscribed to an online newspaper? Nope. Well, that's a no from me as well. So a nice straight to the point there. And then the second question is, if newspapers were phased out, do you reckon it would affect your age groups? I personally don't think that phasing out newspapers would affect me at all. Just because I've always had access to online media, I've never had an applied form attachment to them. Yeah, the majority of our generation has, so I'm not anywhere near accessing it online. And I'm not sure of the last time I read a newspaper. Me neither. My family was the last time I read a newspaper either. I don't think it even extends to the next generation, because I asked my younger brother the other day if he's ever even read a newspaper, and he hasn't read one ever. It seems to be a generational thing for sure. I personally wouldn't be upset if newspapers were phased out, because I grew up with the ritual of having a daily newspaper at home. But as colleagues state, we are experiencing a historic new phase of human interconnection through media, and that's partly in thanks to new technologies such as smartphones and social media. So yeah, I think that's it. Well thank you very much guys, and thanks for listening. Bye bye.