Internet Killed the Newspaper Star

As a writer and journalist, I would have thought the day the newspaper died, would personally, be painful. I was an idealistic kid and used to think I'd forever be a double or triple-column, half-page writer in some major newspaper…naturally, I'd also be writing the great American Novel, Oscar winning screenplays, and directing all of my own films.

Twenty years ago, most of us would not have thought that the majority of our news would be from an online source as opposed to the newspaper. We all thought that it would be television that would kill the newspaper…as it had done the radio star. Now, in a way it still is video doing the killing…except the broadcasting takes place online.

I'm so keen on writing this because recently, a local survey came out measuring the difference in the size of newspapers from 20 years ago in various cities. The amount of shrinkage is significant. We shouldn't blame ourselves over the demise of the newspapers. Nor, should we be made to feel guilty about it. Progress changes and moves everything forward. Some older folks at dinner one night implied that by not reading the tangible newspaper – our generation, and those that follow are missing out on some additional level of intelligence. One that only they would be privy to, because of their ink stained fingers.

I occasionally enjoy the Sunday morning phonebook-sized paper with the sale ads and coupons. Sometimes, certain sections are fun to read cover to cover…I just don't have time to read the whole thing, nor do I have the space to store it. Plus, it uses too much paper!

The tree-saving method of reading my news online at high-speeds is not the same experience as flipping through ink on paper, that I concede. I also love books. However, for my news I prefer to use the internet. I select which ads I will allow to interrupt my field of vision, I read whole pages at a time, without a "continued on page…"

The internet is always on and ready for me to engage. In one click, I am instantly updated on developments that took place just moments prior. I have access to satellites in space that will show me more than one publisher's point of view, in fact I can see the news from more than one nation's point of view…THAT is the amazing part of being tied to the global community. I am more informed minute by minute than my friends waiting in their driveway each morning, coffee in one hand, the other hand ready to be stained with ink.

With respect to my older friends at dinner that night, which part of these advantages of internet news gathering is deficient in, or empty of intelligence? I've yet to see where it is.