Week 7: Redundant

During last weeks session we had discussion on the globalisation of online journalism. The main theme of the discussion was on how the Internet has replaced the traditional task of journalism. We now witness many publications having online versions of magazines and newspapers.

Over the past year or so it has been said that the purpose of journalism is gradually being erased. The arrival of new interactive services such as the Internet has given rise to the prospect that in the future journalistic involvement in political communication will no longer be required. By now it is apparent that information is growing explosively, but the downside is that quicker reporting means less time for variety and processing.

The ‘Guardian’ would have to be a very good example in the fact that it has arguably been at the forefront of successfully translating traditional journalism online, with their website being updated by the minute containing a variety of usability and choice. The ultimate control is by the user and they decide when, and where and how to consume media. It has now come to a point where journalists are finding it gradually difficult to catch the attention of the public within a society that is overfull with information. Increasingly it is now the receiver to whom the task of selection falls on.

‘My CNN.Com ‘ offers a ‘cerate’ your own newspaper service, which is based on the reader’s individual interests and details. It makes something like the ‘clipping service’ used by journalists for the past century or so, accessible to its readers.

In a medium that encourages such a substantial proliferation of voices, so how do readers select those which offer reliable news, can the same practise still be used as to how we once selected the daily newspaper? A lot of comments on news websites are now produced by the reader’s, so what role is there left now for the journalist.