Journalism On The Internet Essay, Research Paper

Journalism on the Internet

The common forms of media in today’s world each have both advantages and

disadvantages. The Internet has been around for an almost equal amount of time

as most of them, but only recently has it become a popular way of retrieving

information. The Internet takes the best of all other medium and combines them

into a very unique form. The Internet is the best way to retrieve information.

This combination of paper publishing, TV, radio, telephones, and mail is the

future of communications. The internet has several types of journalism which can

be defined into three sections. One section is online magazines, online

broadcasting, and other online services. The next group is resource files and

web pages. The third is discussion groups/forums and e-mail. I will investigate

these areas of the net, showing the advantages and disadvantages of each in

comparison to the conventional forms.

In order to understand what all these topics are you must first understand

what the internet is. The simple answer is that it is computers all over the

globe connected together by telephone wires. It was first made by the military,

“No one owns the Internet”, to have a network with no centre. That way it could

never be destroyed by nuclear war. Since then, universities have used it and it

has evolved into what it is today. It is a library that contains mail, stories,

news advertising, and just about everything else. “In a sense, freenets are a

literacy movement for computer mediated communication today, as public libraries

were to reading for an earlier generation.” Now that the term “the net” is

understood lets look at some sections of the net.

An online magazine is a computer that lets users access it through the net.

This computer stores one or more magazines which users can read. “PC magazine

and other magazines are available on the Web” “Maclean’s Magazine and Canadian

Business online; and Reuters’ Canadian Newsclips.” This form is much better that

conventional publishing, “we are using the online service to enhance the print

magazine”, for several reasons. It is environmentally safe, “Publish without

Paper”, most are free, “$50 a month on CompuServe”, you can get any article from

any year at the touch of a button, and you can search for key words. “Search

engines make it easy pinpointing just the information you need”. The articles

don’t have space limits so you will get a specially edited full story version

(depending on the reporter) and other articles that didn’t make the print. It is

easy to compare the story with another journalists view, or get the story from a

journalist from another country. This way, the reader can make informed

decisions on anything, without bias. A few people complain that there is too

much information to receive, “mass jumble”, but there are filter programs that

will cut the information to any set amount. CNN online is a broadcast web page

(another computer). CNN not only has the articles to read but video, and sound

clips too. Anyone can get up to the minute news, and reports. “We will send a

reporter to the game, who will interview people like the coach and uplink the

story while the game is being played.” This is an excellent addition to TV. It

is a mix of TV and publishing. TV has a schedule to keep and might cut out parts

simply for time but there is no time limit online. Also, because it is

interactive, users will remember the information longer than if they watched TV.

An online service is a web page that sells something. It is easy to order

anything, from flowers to even airline tickets. “…opportunity to buy tickets

through TicketMaster.” But even this has problems, “the Internet is new and many

possible types of fraud must be dealt with,” but the solution is software,

“Secure Courier…a secure means of transferring financial transactions”. This

service is the home shopping, catalogue, and printed flier replacement. Their

advantage is that you can buy directly, or skip them if you wish, unlike TV.

Web pages on the internet are computers that are dedicated to letting

people access them. Many companies have a web page that offers help to customers,

news, services, product updates, advice from experts, even “information on

elections, government programs, and so forth.” “These new, online services

include daily industry news, classified, a directory of suppliers, an

interactive forum, and tons of reference material, including government

documents, surveys, speeches, papers, and statistics.” Even home businesses can

have a page and advertise their products or services. The only other medium that

comes close to what a web page can do is the help telephone lines, but a web

page is much more useful. Resource files are like a library of information. By

using a search program a user can find files on any topic. They can get, digital

books, reports, pictures, statistics, university essays, sound files, video, and

even programs, “You can even download the federal budget simulator”. However,

there is always going to be the possibility of false information, but because it

is so easy to speak your mind on the net, this bad information is quickly found

and deleted. “Established sources such as universities, libraries, and

government agencies can be considered reasonably reliable….Then comes the

free-for-all.” “You must be a critical viewer of both the source and the

content”

The final area is discussion groups or forums. There is a forum for just

about any topic. “The overall advantage is the spread of ideas, information, and

thoughts between people who would not otherwise correspond. The Result is a free

flow if ideas with little moderation or control”. A forum is a mail group that

allow people all over the world discuss a topic, trade information, etc.

“everything from uploaded works by Canadian artists to chats on hockey and

politics.” Each forum has many users, each with their own point of view. Anyone

can talk, bias or not, loving or hating the topic. “There are no rules about

what can or can not go on the Internet. Legal standards are almost impossible to

establish and even less likely to be enforced on a global link,”. However, this

free flow of information can cause problems. These are evident in adult forums

and the EFF. The Electronic Freedom Foundation is a group of people that want

all information to be available to anyone. This information can be anything such

as; how to build a car bombs, atomic bombs, working computer virus code,

government files, UFO info, hacking, cracking (copying software), and pheaking

(free telephone calls). This information is illegal in some countries, and can

be harmful or fatal if used. It is still available because of the freedom of

information act. The information has always been available, but only lately has

it become this easy to get. Adult forums and web pages have created a stir in

the government. There are explicit pictures, novels, catalog, stories, mail, and

even child porn on the net. The government has set out to stop the child porn

but allowed the other adult material to pass by. It would be improper for a

young child to access this information. To stop this, parents can install

programs to lock out these web pages, but a knowledgeable child can still get

access to them. The government is currently working on this problem and setting

up laws to protect the people who want to be protected, while not infringing on

the rights of the people who want access to this information.

As you can see, the Internet has the potential to be the worlds #1 medium.

With the ever expanding Web and a growing number of users, this is only a matter

of time. Journalism on the Internet is only one of many things that will be

available through the net. As these technologies advance, barriers will be

broken, rules set, and the world’s knowledge will be a phone call and a mouse

click away.

Footnotes in Order

Bill Kempthorne, “Internet, So What?”, The Computer Paper, September, (1995), p.

20

Trueman, “The 1995 Canadian Internet Awards”, The Computer Paper, September,

(1995), p. 94

Michael J. Miller, “Where Do I Want to Go Today”, PC Magazine, March 28, (1995),

P. 75

Sorelle Saidman, “Online Canadian Content Expanding despite Prodigy Setback”,

Toronto Computes, November, (1995), p. 9

Doug Bennet, “Confessions of an online publisher”, Toronto Computes, November

(1995), p. 35

“The Internet Comes of Age” PC Magazine, May 30, (1995), P. 19

Casey Abell, “Letters”, PC Magazine, May 30, (1995), P. 19

Rick Ayre and Don Willmott, “The Internet Means Business”, Pc Magazine, May 16,

(1995), p. 197

Bill Kempthorne, “Internet, So What?”, The Computer Paper, September, (1995), p.

20

Chris Carder, “Sports on the Internet a winner”, Toronto Computes, November,

(1995), P. 98

Chris Carder, “Sports on the Internet a winner”, Toronto Computes, November,

(1995), P. 98

Patrick McKenna, “Netscape’s Digital Envelope For Internet Transactions”, The

Computer Paper, September, (1995), p. 90

Patrick McKenna, “Netscape’s Digital Envelope For Internet Transactions”, The

Computer Paper, September, (1995), p. 90

Michael J. Miller, “Where Do I Want to Go Today”, PC Magazine, March 28, (1995),

P. 75

Doug Bennet, “Confessions of an online publisher”, Toronto Computes, November

(1995), p. 37

Michael J. Miller, “Where Do I Want to Go Today”, PC Magazine, March 28, (1995),

P. 75

Bill Kempthorne, “Internet, So What?”, The Computer Paper, September, (1995), p.

21

Bill Kempthorne, “Internet, So What?”, The Computer Paper, September, (1995), p.

21

Bill Kempthorne, “Internet, So What?”, The Computer Paper, September, (1995), p.

21

Sorelle Saidman, “Online Canadian Content Expanding despite Prodigy Setback”,

Toronto Computes, November, (1995), p. 9

Bill Kempthorne, “Internet, So What?”, The Computer Paper, September, (1995), p.

22