NDM News: The future of journalism

1) Why does Clay Shirky argue that 'accountability journalism' is so important and what example does he give of this?

He argues this because it means that the people responsible for whatever injustice is caused, are held responsible for their actions since their deception would have been revealed by professional journalists.

2) What does Shirky say about the relationship between newspapers and advertisers? Which websites does he mention as having replaced major revenue-generators for newspapers (e.g. jobs, personal ads etc.)?

He says that the newspapers basically used to take advantage of the fact that they were, at one point, the most easily accessible method of advertisement available and therefore were able to charge a large sum of money from people who wanted to advertise their content or product. This made their advertisement revenue very high to the point that they became dependent on this revenue. However, now advertisers are finding newer ways, such as those promoted my new and digital media, to promote their own brands at a cheaper price, which also reaches, in some cases, a much wider audience.

3) Shirky talks about the 'unbundling of content'. This means people are reading newspapers in a different way. How does he suggest audiences are consuming news stories in the digital age?

He suggests that rather than putting a variety of different information in a paper, as is typically done in print, it is more common that people just want to view one specific news story or activity as opposed to being distributed as a whole. As a result of this, more people click to view one particular page, online as opposed to viewing the whole paper therefore the overall readership will decrease since other material from the paper is not being read.

4) Shirky also talks about the power of shareable media. How does he suggest the child abuse scandal with the Catholic Church may have been different if the internet had been widespread in 1992?

This scandal would have been a lot more difficult to idea as the internet allows for the ability to anonymously share information. Therefore, if the internet was as widespread then, as it is now, this information would have been exposed fast and it could have helped to prevent what was going on at the time.

5) Why does Shirky argue against paywalls? 

The reason he argues against them is because newspapers are supposed to be a public good that is readily available to everyone as an audience.

6) What is a 'social good'? In what way is journalism a 'social good'?

A social good is a good or service which is available and benefits a large proportion of people. Journalism is an example of this as it is designed to be produced and mass-distributed amongst a variety of people. It is supposed to appeal to various different people and provide them with current affairs, entertainment and in some cases, gossip.

7) Shirky says newspapers are in terminal decline. How does he suggest we can replace the important role in society newspapers play? What is the short-term danger to this solution that he describes?

He states that "We need a class of institutions or models, whether they’re endowments or crowdsourced or what have you — we need a model that produces five percent of accountability journalism. and that you can only replace newspaper with newspapers themselves. He thinks that a bad thing is going to happen  and people aren't taking it seriously. there is going to be a decline in accountability journalism which means corruption will be rife.2

8) Look at the first question and answer regarding institutional power. Give us your own opinion: how important is it that major media brands such as the New York Times or the Guardian continue to stay in business and provide news?

I think it is still very important because this is the same news that gets spread on social media. It is very common for smaller institutions or radio corporations to emulate the news that has been provided by larger corporations. They are also still quite popular, even if smaller companies are going bust in the newspaper industry.

NDM Story #12 - Channel 4 News defends Facebook live stream of battle for Mosul

Channel 4 News defends Facebook live stream of battle for Mosul

Summary:

Channel 4 News, along with other news publishers such as al-Jazeera join the online fad of live streaming events as they occur. However, this form of live streaming would usually be performed in a bid to entertain and promote an event. In this case, it was a war that was being streamed. A varied reaction was felt by viewers as they watched the war in Iraq as it happened. One particular viewpoint was that people shouldn't have the ability to "like" and comment emojis on it as it almost seems like satire and as if people are not taking the matter seriously. The audience seem to be confused of the line between news and entertainment.

My personal opinion:

I think that this is uncalled for. I believe that Channel 4 have taken it too far and I cant believe that they're that desperate to "fit in" and utilise social media in such a negative way. Instead of doing something about the situation at hand, they've simply been cowardly and let it happen to make money off of it and i think that's wrong. This is not journalism, this is negligence of a serious matter and I'm sure if they were the ones involved in the incident, they wouldn't be very happy to know that others are profiting off of their pain, anguish and perhaps even death. Their tactic that's seemingly promoting this event as entertainment is, in my opinion, despicable and I think it is totally inappropriate. They need to realise the boundary between news and entertainment and not cross one for another because it is a sensitive topic. However, I will admit that it, in some ways, may be useful for viewers to see, in the sense that they're unaware of just how bad the situation is and maybe this will ignite something in audience members to perhaps put a stop to it or at least fully acknowledge what trauma is being caused in Iraq.

NDM Story #11 - Digital Publisher Woven Digital Lays off under 20

Digital Publisher Woven Digital Lays Off Under 20

Summary:
Woven Digital, a technology firm, have made people redundant in order to "scale down" and then counteracted this move by "scaling up", having  allegedly hired another 3 members of staff. The majority of these stuff who were "laid off" were working for the acquired company "HitFix" who specialised in the entertainment-news industry.

• just under 20 employees
• 110-120 employee pre-redundancy
• $100million funding raised in series A round in 2014
• this summer raised $18.5 million in a series B funding round

My personal opinion:

I think that this article just goes to show that not only does new and digital media have an effect on print and television broadcasting but it also has a direct effect on itself - it highlights the fact that really and truly, competition is high even on the digital side of things and that even in this industry, it is difficult to gain and retain a job.

Newspapers: the effect of online technology

1) I disagree with Murdoch's views because I think that this type of information is usually readily available from other platforms, anyway. I think that he is targetting the BBC as his corporation personally feels threatened by the BBC but the truth is that many sources of news are freely available online and it is not limited to just the BBC. I think people are quick to blame the BBC just because it is one of the most popular sources of news. I think that news corp should realise that the reason their firm is not so successful is more to do with the trustworthiness or lack thereof, of the firm, as opposed to the availability and accessibility of the content they produce.

2) Read this blog on the Times paywall three years on.

3) I believe that if he thinks his news content is of high value that people would have to pay, and then he can, it’s the choice of the audience if they want to. He has faith in that "The world is changing and newspapers have to adapt" and what he does here is give it as a newspaper as people get yesterday’s news today and efficient.

4)  Choose two comments from below the Times paywall article - one that argues in favour of the paywall and one that argues against. Copy a quote from each and explain which YOU agree with and why.

@rajunarisetti @newscorp @psmith but what are they really buying?
http://crave.cnet.co.uk/laptops/nexus-7-for-50-when-you-subscribe-to-the-times-tablet-app-50009904/ …


This is explaining are we really giving for the news or just the Times ad as to showing the nexus 7 ad for it. They're giving advertisement approaches to engage audience and the person commenting is suggesting is that what we really buying as to not showing the content which can be shown as there is a pay wall.

@NewsCorp's UK CEO Mike Darcey on Times 140,000 paid subscribers & growing revenue from engaged readers http://bit.ly/11cDyYa  h/t @psmith

This comment is said to be showing the enjoyment of the readers. It is to show the money that the Times are making and the subscribers who are building up and this could lead anywhere.

5) Read this article from the Media Briefing on the continuing decline of the newspaper industry.

6) Why do you think the Evening Standard has bucked the trend and increased circulation and profit in the last two years?

Because of how newspapers they have made as they say 700,000 a day it’s more likely to 900,000 as they are pushing for rise of circulation. They made a 27% increase of flow by the ABC. But they lost 5% of their audiences meaning in that period it was going down slowly.

7) Is there any hope for the newspaper industry or will it eventually die out? Provide a detailed response to this question explaining and justifying your opinion.

In my opinion, I think that the newspaper industry will continously decline, tdue to the increasingly popular use of digital devices and the digital content you can use to keep updated. I think that in order for the industry to increase their sales, they'd have to target a  niche audience who would devote their income to the firm and be loyal to the company. Murdoch is correct when he states that newspapers have adjust to the use of new technology but it would be too late as perhaps getting money however it’s the audience who would still follow them. Advertisement right now is what saving newspaper industry and also the people who for them to move as for the reason they think it’s important.

NDM Story #10 - I'm with you on the digital revolution, it's the lack of journalism I can't face

I'm with you on the digital revolution, it's the lack of journalism I can't face

Summary:

A US newspaper called "The Citizen" closed their publication after 90 years of having run it and failing to sell it on to someone else. This was largely due to the competition of two other popular newspapers that were locally distributed such as Laconia Daily Sun. The article also features commentary from columnist Arlinghaus who is unhappy with the tendencies people have to claim that they receive their News from Twitter. He states that it's often the case that people actually link to a news page as opposed to sharing their own news on their twitter accounts. Therefore, in actuality, they have news distributed to them via Twitter but the source of the News itself is NOT Twitter. He also highlights that the same is the case during radio interviews since the interviewers typically quote news from newspapers without crediting the reporters who gather and initially distributed the news. Therefore, it's just recycled news as opposed to anything new or innovative, being produced. The writer of this article states that "Social media reacts to news, it doesn’t find it. And the fall in the numbers of news-gatherers is a genuine concern for our democracies."

My personal opinion:

I agree with this article because I do feel that generally, news is recycled without the initial reporter being credited for their hardwork. Therefore this definitely is probably one of he underlying problems with the decline in journalism and particularly newspaper journalism. I feel that these journalists may also feel unappreciated and therefore discouraged to produce any new content as a result of their work not being recognised or praised by the masses (whether their audience or by the institution they are working on behalf of). However, I do think made by that the claim made by Arlinghaus that "“No one gets their news from Twitter even the people who think they do.” is a little extreme because there are in fact, incidents where news has genuinely been posted first and foremost on social media. This newly occurring phenomenon has been done by professionals and citizen journalists alike as it allows production of news to be in a fast-paced manner, promoting the "breaking news" style more realistically. Therefore, it isn't true to say that no one gets their news from twitter because citizen journalism offers ways where people can make the news using social media sites. This fact also disproves the following comment: "Social media reacts to news, it doesn’t find it" because there have been cases where social media users HAVE, in actuality, found news and posted it themselves.

NDM Story #9- The New York Times introduces its new 'International Edition'

The New York Times introduces its new 'International Edition'

Summary:
The International New York Times has changed their name to The New York Times International Edition in an attempt to retain and, if possible, gain a wider audience on their digital paper. They've also redesigned their website to achieve the same goal. They are trying to increase their advertisement and subscription revenues by increasing their readership. They've also had to make a large number of their French employees redundant due to moving their headquarters to London. This new version of the paper will be more geared towards those interested business and analysis with an increase in articles surrounding these topics. The firm is also merging the new international site with their main site promoting one sole brand.

• The company has spent an estimated $50m (£42m) over three years in an attempt to widen their digital footprint globally, in a multitude of languages
• They're constantly expanding their employee numbers from reporters to editors in order to increase international story figures.

My personal opinion:
I think that these changes are quite minor and will probably be ineffective since the firm still expects people to subscribe to the online service. I understand the motives of the company and why they think this will work but I don't think their goal of attaining a normal profit or even an increased profit would be fulfilled because audiences have access already from a wider range of free articles. Unless the company attempts to have exclusive content which cannot be observed on any other website, I find it difficult to see any success in this change. I think revenue would definitely be increased due to advertisements but regarding subscriptions, most likely not. In fact, they'd probably be at a loss, again, unless they were targeting a niche audience (in which case their goal of a wider or sustained audience would not be fulfilled). Their overall reasons for changing the design and title are too many, in my opinion and I think that if they are trying to retain a digital "newsprint" audience, they need to focus on one objective at a time rather than plunging straight into the deep-end, headfirst without assessing the likely outcomes, fully.

NDM Story #7 - CEO Iger Srrs Disney's Future in Mobile Video, Technology

CEO Iger Sees Disney's Future in Mobile Video, Technology



Summary:

Bob Iger, the CEO of Walt Disney views technology betterment as being the key to connecting to a wider range of audiences (consumers), during a conversation with the owner of New England Patriots. He states that he believes that consumers are more inclined to have more of a choice of what they want and at what prices, dependent on their own needs, as opposed to those of the business providing their services. He admits that his main goal at this point in time is trying to figure out the best way to utilise new digital media in order to better his corporation for both himself, employees and the consumers. He refused to answer questions regarding speculations of acquiring other digitally-based companies such as Twitter and Netflix. He also believes that mobile technology particularly, is to blame for the unsuccessfulness of "SportsCenter",the company's news show.

• Operating income at Disney's cable-TV division, which includes ESPN and the Disney Channel, rose less than 1% in the quarter that ended July 2.

My personal opinion:
I agree with the CEO's views regarding the importance of new and digital media, in this day and age as it is a heavily used component for a variety of different purposes - news intake, entertainment, education etc. Therefore, it is vital, for Disney, to try to stay in touch with, and keep up with the ongoing changes in order to effectively invest in, and provide for consumer satisfaction. Hiwever, I don't think it will be as easy as he makes it seem. It seems that his mindset is that merging with, or acquiring a business will allow for this digital progress whereas I don't personally think that is the case.

NDM Story #8 - Marketer MVPs of Social Media: Starbucks Rules Facebook With Almond Milk, of All Things

Marketer MVPs of Social Media: Starbucks Rules Facebook With Almond Milk, of All Things

Summary:

This article just briefly shares the news of Starbucks' success in marketing via social media, by promoting their drink using both Facebook and Instagram and thus gaining more advertising than perhaps was initially anticipated. It also displays other brands such as Netflix and Chanel using social media to promote their individual services to consumers and potential consumers alike


My personal opinion:

Social media is a quick, easy way (can be done free or at a fairly cheap cost) to promote the business and individual products alike. This information could be useful for the brands to realise what it takes to increase sales revenue amongst other things such as general exposure of the brand. Unfortunately, here isn't much else to say regarding this topic as the article itself is quite short.

NDM: The decline of the newspaper industry

This article outlines the extent to which the newspaper industry is in decline due to the uprise in New and Digital Media. It shows statistics which display the current levels of decline in this industry in various countries such as New Zealand, Australia and Latin America. It discusses the impact the decline particularly has on the journalists working for the newspaper industry.

1) Do you agree with its view that it is ‘a cause for concern, but not for panic’?

I do agree that it is a cause for concern but not for panic because there are still various other methods of producing and releasing news which can still have very similar impacts on audiences as how newspapers do. However, I do feel that the loss of a physical piece of information has been made. It has also altered the opportune times for news reading. For example, generally newspapers would be read in the morning perhaps on the way to work which reassured news corporations that their content was being read on a regular basis. Although now,online statistics can also track this information which can be useful, still.

2) The article is 10 years old - an eternity in digital media terms. Have the writer's predictions come to pass? Use statistics from your Ofcom research to support or challenge the writer's argument.

I think that some of the writer's predictions have come true but not to the extreme extent suggested within this article.

3) The Economist suggests that high-quality journalism in the future will be backed by non-profit organisations rather than profit-seeking media corporations. Is there any evidence for this? How is the Guardian funded? What do major stories from the last year such as the Panama Papers suggest about how investigative journalism is conducted in the digital age?

Journalism  has been described as 'profit-seeking enterprise managed in an efficient and cost-effective manner' yet they are constantly making a loss rather than making profit. This may suggest their aim is to gain further future profits as they gradually invest in the E-Media platforms.The Panamas are able to dodge taxes which displays the power of investigative journalism.

Build The Wall analysis

1) Read the article in full.

2) Create a blogpost on your MEST3 Exam Blog called 'Build The Wall analysis'. 

3) Summarise each section in one sentence:
Section 1 - It's an issue (and seems quite pushy) to suddenly demand to be paid after audiences have been freely available to read content online at no cost)
Section 2 - Since there is existing free content available online, the paid subscriptions corporations would struggle to produce unique content that does not replicate the free content
Section 3 - This ability to start a paid subscription service would enable news corporations to earner a much higher revenue (and possibly profit, as well) than they are currently receiving from the minimal advertisement revenue that they are currently sustained by.
Section 4 - It is a late change to be made by the industry as a whole but it is still possible to generate revenue' using this method.

4) Summarise David Simon’s overall argument in 250 words.
David Simon argues that news industries should use a paid subscription method in order to generate revenue directly from consumers as opposed to relying on the minimal amount of advertisement revenue available. This would allow audiences to view exclusive content which is available at any time to those who pay their subscription fee. Therefore, this would ensure that the newspaper industry could possibly thrive, generating enough revenue to cater for their competition and allow their firms to remain somewhat successful in order to prevent further revenue decline from the print news industry.
The reason this is an important issue to tackle is that it was a factor which played in making journalists redundant which means that the newspaper firms would also be at a loss due to the backlash of this decision (having poor quality articles available for their audiences to read. He also highlights the important point that the news industry is far too late in introducing this method, since it has been around 15 years since the internet was accessible to everyone which a lot of institutions and business manage to adapt to well in comparison to how poorly the news industry dealt with the new media form. This left the newspaper industry behind as online websites offered news content for free which was a better deal for consumers than the prices which they'd have to have paid had they have went to buy a print edition. He also makes the point that in order for this paid subscription service to be successful, every institution would need to put it into place otherwise there would still be access to free content available which thus defeats the objective in the first place.

5) Read this Guardian comment by AC Grayling piece on the state of journalism that was published the year before David Simon's essay. What references to new and digital media can you find in AC Grayling's argument? Overall, do you feel the comment piece is positive or negative about the influence of new/digital media on the newspaper industry?

AC Grayling's piece on the state of journalism refers to the impact that citizen journalism is having on the news industry, as highlighted through the phenomena of blogging and interactivity it has created to the comment threads that accompany articles. Grayling discusses the benefits and drawbacks of the influence of new/digital media on the newspaper industry, such as users having the chance to express their opinions and debate as well as the ability to make the world "porous to information". Despite the negatives such as the "volume of rubbish" online and the weaker presence the media has over some parts of the world such as the US, the article gives an overall message that we just have to accept the changes that new and digital media has brought us.


6) Finally, what is your own opinion? Do you agree that newspapers need to put online content behind a paywall in order for the journalism industry to survive? Would you be willing to pay for news online? Critical autonomy is the key skill in A2 Media - you need to be able form opinions on these issues.

I personally don't think that there is a way to revive the newspaper industry. I definitely think that there will always be articles available from journalists but they won't receive the credit or even money they deserve for the content produced. As a result, this could lead to them feeling unmotivated within their job and thus cause them to quit as they may have a lack of self fulfillment. I do not agree that putting up a pay wall would do any good for the firms - if anything, I think that their audience would be even more encouraged to move to another source of news in order to prevent themselves from succumbing to the demand of these firms. I personally would not pay for news online. This is because I am aware that there are free alternatives which would most likely offer the same content. Another point is that I would usually only read one or two articles as opposed to a whole newspaper issue therefore I would feel that my money wouldn't be put to good use.

Ofcom report into news consumption 2015

Key statistics and changes that Ofcom document:

• Two-thirds of adults say they use TV for news (67% of UK adults saying they use TV as a source of news), compared to three-quarters (75%) in 2014 and 78% in 2013.
• Nine in ten adults in the UK (89%) say that they follow news (on any platform) & One in ten (10%) of adults say they don’t follow news, compared to 5% in 2014 and 7% in 2013 (figure 1.2).
• The number of people who use the internet or apps for news has remained the same since 2014, with just over four in ten (41%) doing so, compared to just under a third in 2013 (32%).
•  Newspapers are used by three in ten (31%), which represents a decrease of nine percentage points since 2014 and 2013 (when 40% of UK adults said they used newspapers for news).
• There has also been a decrease in those that say they use radio as a source of news (from 36% in 2014 to 32% in 2015)
• Those aged 55+ are more likely than those aged 16-24 to use TV, newspapers and radio for news consumption, while the opposite is true for the internet/ apps
• Around half (51%) of people aged 16-24 use TV for news, compared to 86% of those aged 55+. A similar pattern can be seen for consumption of news through newspapers (21% of 16-24s vs. 44% aged 55+) and through radio (23% vs. 37%).
• Men are more likely than women to use any of the four main platforms for news (TV, internet, newspapers and radio). Seven in ten (69%) men use TV for news, compared to 65% of women. The same is true for the internet (45% vs. 37%), newspapers (34% vs. 27%) and radio (35% vs. 29%).
• People in the AB socio-economic group are more likely than those in the DE socio-economic group to consume news on any of the four main platforms: TV (71% vs 67%), the internet (50% vs. 29%), newspapers (38% vs. 26%) and radio (46% vs. 23%). 
• The use of TV alone is more pronounced among over-55s (26%) and those in the DE socio-economic group (28%) than among 16-24s (13%) and those in the AB socio-economic group (14%). 
• One in five (20%) people aged 16-24 report that they only use the internet for news, compared to just 2% of those aged 55+.
• Around three in ten (29%) of those who consume news in the UK nominate BBC One as their single most important news source, the same as last year (28%). BBC One has nearly three times as many mentions as the next two sources, ITV (10%) and the BBC website or app (8%), and nearly six times as many as the BBC News channel (5%). Facebook has seen a significant increase in the proportion of people who say it is their single most personally important news source (from 2% in 2014 to 5% in 2015).

2) What are the most popular platforms for audiences to access news and how has this changed in recent years?

Television is by far the most-used platform for news, with 67% of UK adults saying they use TV as a source of news

3) How do different age demographics access news in the UK?

Age seems to be another apparently interesting demographic which seems to have an effect on levels of news consumption throughout the masses.
Another demographic that Ofcom have shown particular interest in is News consumption in relation to the gender of each individual 

4) Does socio-economic status change attitudes to news? If so, how?

One demographic that has had particular attention in regards to having their news consumption being analysed is people's socio-economic status which seems to have a huge impact on both whether or not certain groups access news and which methods they may use to do so. Statistics found suggest that those in an AB socio-economic demographic are more likely to consume news. These findings are consistent across ALL four main news platforms (via radio, television, online and print methods)

5) How many different sources of news are used on average? How does differ between different groups?
On average 32% of consumers use only ONE source to attain their news updates whereas the overwhelming majority (77%) claim to use no more than three different media platforms to stay informed on the latest news. This statistic has remained unchanged since 2014 (as of 2015).

6) How has news consumption through television changed in recent years?
 44% of TV users said they used just one source (42% in 2014)
An increase of 2% of TV users
The two heavily used Television News outlet sources are TV channels BBC and ITV with 48% of UK adults stating that they use the prior and 27% of them saying that they use the latter as a source of News.

7) How much has news consumption through newspapers declined since 2005?
The reach of national newspapers has decreased considerably in the past ten years, with reach among all adults decreasing by more than 27 percentage points since 2005

8) How does newspaper reach differ by age group?
Reach of national newspapers varies by age group: 29.3% of 15-24s are print newspaper readers, compared to 67.9% of over-65s.

9) Which are the most popular newspapers and websites in the UK? What do you know about those newspapers' political viewpoints?

Daily Mail d 5.5 million users 
The Sun follows with 5.2 million users,

Daily Mail had 1.8 million users, while The Sun had 0.06 million.

10) How does online news consumption differ for age, gender and socio-economic status? 
Age:
Consumption of online news via any device is considerably higher for those aged 16-24 (59%) than for over-55s (23%), according to figure 1.3
Gender:

Socio-economic status:
50% of AB classed news users accessed their updates using the internet which is almost double the percentage of DE classed people who went online
29%

11) What percentage of people use social media to access news? How does this differ by age and socio-economic status?

Of those who use the internet or apps for news, around half (51%)

ore than two in five (43%) respondents say they use social media sites

 37% who say they use search engines

28% who use websites or apps of newspapers

17% who use websites or apps of news aggregation sites

16% who use websites or apps of online news organisations,

 6% who use websites or apps of news magazines 

5% using blogs

about six in ten (61%) 16-24s who use the internet/ apps for news say they use social media sites, compared to just over a quarter of those aged 55+ (26%)

search engines; 47% of 55+s and 32% of 16-34s say they use these for news.

12) What percentage of users only use social media sites for their news?

10% of online news users use only social media sites for news, rising to 16% of those aged 16-24. 

overall, 30% of those who used social media for news said they ‘mostly’ accessed their news stories through social media posts,

13) What are the most popular online sites for news?
Twitter (61% rated highly), Facebook (59%), and YouTube (48%),
Guardian/Observer - 54%
Sky News - 53%
BBC News website/app - 45%
ITV website/app - 44%

14) What percentage of 16-24 year olds access news mostly from social media?
43% of 16-24 year olds predominantly use social media to access news
32% of this age group demographic access local news particularly, from social media.

15) How do audiences find stories online? Do you follow links or go to the homepage of the news provider?
Personally, I only visit a news story post if it has been shared by others. This would usually be the only instance where I'd access online news, The only other circumstance where I might deliberately search for a piece of news would be if I heard a story through word of mouth and then wanted to undertake further research of the topic in order to learn more about it.

New/digital media: audience and institution

16) What are the benefits for audiences from the changes new and digital media have had on the news industry?

• Easier to produce and post
• News can be accessed at any time
• Quicker to access
• A variety of perspectives can be attained

17) What are the benefits for institutions from the changes new and digital media have had on the news industry?

• Consumption can be increased
• A wider audience can be attained

18) What are the downsides for audiences as a result of new and digital media in news?

• Misleading, false information is promoted and shared on a mass basis
• Opinions are shared more often than verified, valid information is

19) What are the downsides for institutions as a result of new and digital media in news?

• It has led to a huge loss in audience
• It has caused a huge cost for institutions
• Having to develop news producing methods

20) Who has benefited most from the changes new and digital media have had on the news industry - audiences or institutions?

Audiences probably benefit more with the increased variety of opinions, platforms with easiness to access. Moreover new can now be tailored for audiences to suit their tastes and preferences leading to their favourite topics coming through encouraging the reading of news rather than ignoring it because you 'arent interested' 

NDM baseline assessment learner response

WWW: A thoughtful, well-balanced essay demonstrating autonomy
EBI: Cover institutions in more depth. Google etc. vs traditional news institutions alongside Pareto's law etc.

36/48 - B grade

Write a new, detailed paragraph to add to your essay that addresses one of the EBIs specified in your feedback. This may be the other side of the argument (the idea that audiences are not empowered) or perhaps a new or improved example from the wider media. Make sure this is an extremely well-developed paragraph of several hundred words, encompassing media issues, debates, examples and theories wherever possible.

Pareto's Law states that the minority of (large) corporations serve the majority of the audience. It could be that this audience is engaged in taking advantage of the productions of these institutions due to the fact that they're aware that they're not the only people using the content provided. This would suggest that mainstream media, which is generally provided by the small proportion of larger institutions, heavily affects the likelihood of audiences feeling empowered of the progression of NDM. As a result of this, audiences may find comfort in this and feel empowered to be part of the mass audience of a popular website or service produced by a major digital institution. An example of this lies within the use of the multinational corporation Google by many different types of people (whether this be smaller businesses or consumers). However, on the other hand, audiences could feel as though they don't have freedom to choose from a variety of institutions and may find that they don't "fit in", so to speak, with the trends of mainstream media. They also may see this as, in actuality, limiting the variety of views and values they are exposed to since the media is now largely dominated by a few institutions rather than a variety. These are the types of audiences who may be looking to alternatives to the commonly used services provided by the largest institutions in the industry. Therefore, although at first glance, the development of the internet seemed like a whirlpool from freedom, it could be perceived by audiences that it makes the larger institutions more powerful and profitable than ever. With regards to News corporations, this idea seems to be increasingly true. Although currently the once-popular newspapers seem to be less successful, there have always been gamechangers who become the most popular news providers. Traditional news corporations still gain some of the market share. However, it seems to be the case that people are turning more to social media as opposed to print or broadcast production. This is particularly the case when citizen journalism, a form of user-generated content, takes place. Since it has become easier for everyday, ordinary citizens to record things, digitally, it's been an almost internet-fad to post the latest news - whether gossip or political - online, for the entire world to see. Therefore, this has allowed users to become more interactive with the news but in a more personal way, aside from institutions. This is, of course, a benefit for audiences as it can come either for free or at a low cost, is readily available and is usually uncensored. However, this can have negative impacts for the institutions who are trying to produce similar, if not better content than citizen journalists. These institutions have also attempted to join the digital world of news but it has come at the cost of having lower revenues from advertising which negatively affects the businesses' success. Therefore, in this instance, Pareto's law does apply in terms of the size of popular corporations. However, it doesn't account for the fact that these corporations are likely to change and develop as time goes on. The most successful business in the news industry, for example, even a year ago, may not be the same one gaining consumer exposure at this moment in time.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0i5diL3vrEibm14cTNVNzVwQWc/view
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B64RbqrUb7BqeDNqWjZlSm5hZVE/view