In my Citizens and Media class, the majority of my classmates regularly proclaim their love for print, particularly newspapers.
They all say that they love to read the print edition of the paper and are deeply concerned by its demise. For years I have been of a similar mindset, thinking that the disappearance of newspapers would be a terrible occurrence.
But I've been reevaluating my stance on newspapers and I realize that I do not exactly share their concerns. As a news designer, I've always felt a loyalty to newspapers, but honestly, they're difficult to read. They leave newsprint on your hands and they're not valued by consumers. And, from my experience, visual elements are often cut by newspapers to make room for more copy.
I think that new media is making newspapers more efficient and more valuable. Links, slideshows, videos and other multimedia are enhancing the papers' content and providing better information for audiences. Plus, it's more convenient to read the paper on your laptop or iPad than to hide behind broadsheets.
But more than that, most people don't like to read. I'll admit that sometimes I only read the headlines and maybe the first few paragraphs, but unless the story is remarkably interesting, I usually don't make it to the jump.
However, if there's a chart, a timeline, a raised quote or any other type of pulled-out information, I definitely read it.
I think the Internet is enhancing these features. There are no spacial constraints, so every story can have an info graphic or bulleted lists that make information easier to process.
Approximately 65 percent of the population are visual learners, according to several Web sites.The brain can process visual information 60,000 times faster than it can process text, and 90 percent of information that comes to the brain is visual.
So is online news and the possible demise of newspapers really as depressing as my classmates thing? Or will online visuals appeal to a wider audience and make getting news more convenient?
4.12.2010
4.05.2010
What your media preference says about you
During an interview last week, I was asked how I get my news. This was an easy question for me: Twitter, Facebook, RSS feeds, Slate, The New York Times (online), The Daily Tar Heel (in print) and sometimes digg.com.
I thought nothing of the question, or of my response. But as I analyzed my interview, waiting to hear if I had been selected for the position, I wondered what our news sources say about our personal character.
It has long been said that traditional media appeal to the older generation, the people who grew up reading the newspaper with their morning coffee. Is this a reflection or a symptom of their greater voter turnout?
My grandparents subscribe to the newspaper. They have a leisurely breakfast each morning and flip through the pages of The Washington Post. Then before bed, they watch the local television news. They are both solid republicans who are politically active and participate in political campaigns.
My mother subscribed to The Charlotte Observer for years, until she started her own business and began working 90 hours per week. Now she gets her news primarily through interactions with customers and from my stepdad, who always shares the latest tweets from CNN.
Despite their opposite political opinions, they are both somewhat politically active, meaning they vote in every election, even the local ones.
My stepmom, who is 20 years younger than my mom, gets her news from Facebook. She only cares about "reconnecting" with her high school friends online. I asked why she has never subscribed to a newspaper, and she said that she wouldn't read it even if she had it. It's not a matter of saving time or money; it's simply a lack of interest.
She has never been registered to vote and probably never will be.
I can't help but wonder if age is not the only factor in the disparity between voter turnout. Are people who rely on traditional media more likely to be politically active than their counterparts who prefer new media? Or is age really the only difference?
Using these questions, I began subtly analyzing my friends. One of them is a political science major who is the definition of political activity. He said that he reads The Washington Post in print, as well as the print edition of The Daily Tar Heel. He also said that social media is, in his opinion, not news.
Another girl knows little about politics, save what her uncle, a politician himself, tells her. She said she only pays attention to news when other people talk about it. Even then she relies on what people are saying in person or on Facebook.
By no means do these responses answer my questions about the correlation between medium and political activity, but I would still argue that how we get our news says a lot about our character, particularly our political efficacy.
I haven't found much research on the question, but I think it's worth exploring. But, I guess my interviewer liked my mix of old and new media, because I got the job!
I thought nothing of the question, or of my response. But as I analyzed my interview, waiting to hear if I had been selected for the position, I wondered what our news sources say about our personal character.
It has long been said that traditional media appeal to the older generation, the people who grew up reading the newspaper with their morning coffee. Is this a reflection or a symptom of their greater voter turnout?
My grandparents subscribe to the newspaper. They have a leisurely breakfast each morning and flip through the pages of The Washington Post. Then before bed, they watch the local television news. They are both solid republicans who are politically active and participate in political campaigns.
My mother subscribed to The Charlotte Observer for years, until she started her own business and began working 90 hours per week. Now she gets her news primarily through interactions with customers and from my stepdad, who always shares the latest tweets from CNN.
Despite their opposite political opinions, they are both somewhat politically active, meaning they vote in every election, even the local ones.
My stepmom, who is 20 years younger than my mom, gets her news from Facebook. She only cares about "reconnecting" with her high school friends online. I asked why she has never subscribed to a newspaper, and she said that she wouldn't read it even if she had it. It's not a matter of saving time or money; it's simply a lack of interest.
She has never been registered to vote and probably never will be.
I can't help but wonder if age is not the only factor in the disparity between voter turnout. Are people who rely on traditional media more likely to be politically active than their counterparts who prefer new media? Or is age really the only difference?
Using these questions, I began subtly analyzing my friends. One of them is a political science major who is the definition of political activity. He said that he reads The Washington Post in print, as well as the print edition of The Daily Tar Heel. He also said that social media is, in his opinion, not news.
Another girl knows little about politics, save what her uncle, a politician himself, tells her. She said she only pays attention to news when other people talk about it. Even then she relies on what people are saying in person or on Facebook.
By no means do these responses answer my questions about the correlation between medium and political activity, but I would still argue that how we get our news says a lot about our character, particularly our political efficacy.
I haven't found much research on the question, but I think it's worth exploring. But, I guess my interviewer liked my mix of old and new media, because I got the job!
3.29.2010
Education or Self-Absorption
A recent poll for the Civitas Institute shows less than half the voters in North Carolina know which political party is in charge of the state legislature.
I would argue that this is not a result of a lack of education, but rather a result of our self-absorption.
In school, I was forced to memorize the state counties, their seats and other facts about North Carolina government, but I never saw this as something that effected me and thus I did not attempt to retain this information.
So perhaps the problem does not lie within the education system, but rather how the information is presented to our students. They aren't taught the importance of local and state government. They simply learn the facts to pass the exams.
The solution is not to fill the minds of young people with facts, but with the desire to learn about these institutions. But how can we do this? I do not know, but I hope the media is able to engage young readers and instill in them a sense of political efficacy.
I would argue that this is not a result of a lack of education, but rather a result of our self-absorption.
In school, I was forced to memorize the state counties, their seats and other facts about North Carolina government, but I never saw this as something that effected me and thus I did not attempt to retain this information.
So perhaps the problem does not lie within the education system, but rather how the information is presented to our students. They aren't taught the importance of local and state government. They simply learn the facts to pass the exams.
The solution is not to fill the minds of young people with facts, but with the desire to learn about these institutions. But how can we do this? I do not know, but I hope the media is able to engage young readers and instill in them a sense of political efficacy.
3.20.2010
Is there still "news" in newspaper?
It is often said that if newspapers disappear, citizens will get less local, state and political news. For two weeks, my Citizens and Media course at UNC-CH conducted a content analysis of six North Carolina newspapers and we found that of over 5,200 stories, only 22 percent was political news.
Further, only about 6 percent was local political news, 5 percent state political news and about 11 percent national political news. In comparison, 27 percent was sports.
I find it interesting that the number of national political news stories was nearly equal to state and local political news combined. For years people have expressed more interest in national politics than state and local, and it seems this is being mirrored by the media -- even these six local newspapers.
But what does the lack of political news say about newspapers? Are they printing more sports and entertainment stories because that is what people want to read, or is there another underlying cause? Are people getting political news from other sources or are they simply not interested?
In North Carolina, several communities have blogs solely devoted to local news, like Chapel Hill Watch. So perhaps citizens would get more political news if they rely on new rather than traditional media.
Further, only about 6 percent was local political news, 5 percent state political news and about 11 percent national political news. In comparison, 27 percent was sports.
I find it interesting that the number of national political news stories was nearly equal to state and local political news combined. For years people have expressed more interest in national politics than state and local, and it seems this is being mirrored by the media -- even these six local newspapers.
But what does the lack of political news say about newspapers? Are they printing more sports and entertainment stories because that is what people want to read, or is there another underlying cause? Are people getting political news from other sources or are they simply not interested?
In North Carolina, several communities have blogs solely devoted to local news, like Chapel Hill Watch. So perhaps citizens would get more political news if they rely on new rather than traditional media.
3.15.2010
Cheaper by the PDF
Recently I talked with several editors of a Greensboro newspaper. The first told me that the paper would soon begin charging for content. She seemed a little skeptical of this development, but referred me to the Editor-In-Chief.
He explained that the site would being using a service to post PDFs of their paper online. As a news designer, I was overjoyed.
He told me that they were doing so to make their "Newspapers in Education" program more affordable. Classrooms can flip through the papers electronically, saving the newspaper a neat sum in printing costs.
But the paper plans to charge a subscription rate for this service.
Will people pay to get their news online if it still looks like a newspaper? Or will they defer to the traditional Web content?
I'm eager to hear how this project turns out. My hope is that people will subscribe to the electronic editions of print media, but I fear this is unlikely.
He explained that the site would being using a service to post PDFs of their paper online. As a news designer, I was overjoyed.
He told me that they were doing so to make their "Newspapers in Education" program more affordable. Classrooms can flip through the papers electronically, saving the newspaper a neat sum in printing costs.
But the paper plans to charge a subscription rate for this service.
Will people pay to get their news online if it still looks like a newspaper? Or will they defer to the traditional Web content?
I'm eager to hear how this project turns out. My hope is that people will subscribe to the electronic editions of print media, but I fear this is unlikely.
2.21.2010
You just have to trust me
I've always had a bit of a problem with trusting people. I tend to believe what they tell me no matter how ridiculous it may sound.
That's probably why my roommate has decorated our wall with post-it notes containing quotes from conversations that make me look like a gullible idiot. But in my defense, why would anyone lie about the sexual orientation of our R.A.? Seriously, why?
When it comes to social media, I have the same problem -- I generally hold my friends' postings to be truthful. Sometimes they are. For instance, my friend Andrew Dunn tweeted that classes before 10 a.m. were canceled the day it snowed. I trusted him and immediately retweeted it to my followers.We all got to sleep an extra two hours.
But my naivete has had the opposite result as well. Last summer, a friend posted on Facebook, "Mr. Baker, Mr. Lynn, Mrs. Crabtree and Mrs. Patterson all got FIRED."
I was horrified. These were some of my favorite teachers! I knew the school was facing budget cuts, so it seemed logical that they might cut teaching positions. I assumed I was getting information from a reliable source.
However, my friend was completely wrong. These teachers all still have their jobs; they were only a risk of being laid-off since they didn't have tenure.
Although I may be too trusting when it comes to social media, I still trust my sense of judgment when it comes to the news. When Fall Out Boy was a trending topic on Twitter, I read the tweets, but then did a Google search for the band to verify that they had broken up.
But you can't always verify gossip. Sure, I probably could have found the list of lay-offs for Gaston County Schools, but at the time it didn't occur to me.
Today I probably would at least attempt to verify something I knew was public record, but relationship statuses and gossip tweets I would take with a grain of salt. I think most people believe that their friends are sharing valid information when it comes to trivial gossip, but with the speed of sending information via social media, I think we could all slow down and verify our sources.
That's probably why my roommate has decorated our wall with post-it notes containing quotes from conversations that make me look like a gullible idiot. But in my defense, why would anyone lie about the sexual orientation of our R.A.? Seriously, why?
When it comes to social media, I have the same problem -- I generally hold my friends' postings to be truthful. Sometimes they are. For instance, my friend Andrew Dunn tweeted that classes before 10 a.m. were canceled the day it snowed. I trusted him and immediately retweeted it to my followers.We all got to sleep an extra two hours.
But my naivete has had the opposite result as well. Last summer, a friend posted on Facebook, "Mr. Baker, Mr. Lynn, Mrs. Crabtree and Mrs. Patterson all got FIRED."
I was horrified. These were some of my favorite teachers! I knew the school was facing budget cuts, so it seemed logical that they might cut teaching positions. I assumed I was getting information from a reliable source.
However, my friend was completely wrong. These teachers all still have their jobs; they were only a risk of being laid-off since they didn't have tenure.
Although I may be too trusting when it comes to social media, I still trust my sense of judgment when it comes to the news. When Fall Out Boy was a trending topic on Twitter, I read the tweets, but then did a Google search for the band to verify that they had broken up.
But you can't always verify gossip. Sure, I probably could have found the list of lay-offs for Gaston County Schools, but at the time it didn't occur to me.
Today I probably would at least attempt to verify something I knew was public record, but relationship statuses and gossip tweets I would take with a grain of salt. I think most people believe that their friends are sharing valid information when it comes to trivial gossip, but with the speed of sending information via social media, I think we could all slow down and verify our sources.
2.14.2010
Information Super Highway?
This week I set out to see just how easy is is for citizens to learn about their government using the Internet. I looked up Gov. Bev Perdue's last finance report, the number of registered voters in North Carolina and the salary of UNC-CH Professor W. Hodding Carter.
In less than an hour I was able to this information, but I was surprised that I found it by using links in newspaper articles and blog posts. I was glad to see that journalism is still very useful in providing information, even in the cyber world. But I wonder, what will happen if all newspapers start charging for online content? Will finding information online be more difficult without access to those links?
Below I have chronicled my search for each bit of information.
Bev Perdue's cash on hand
To find Gov. Bev Perdue's cash on hand, I googled "Bev Perdue finance report cash on hand." I found several news articles, but none of them provided the exact information I needed. And those that did list numbers didn't provide links to the report, so I wasn't satisfied.
I searched the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site and was inundated with a long list of documents that I could not decipher. I opened a few of them but still didn't find the information for cash on hand.
So I went back to Google and found an article in the News & Observer that tagged Gov. Perdue. Using that tag, I was able to pull up every blog post and article mentioning the governor. I then searched for "finance report" and found a link to Perdue's campaign finance reports for 2008.
But the link led to a report from Jan. 2009, not the most recent report. But it did lead me to the correct portion of the BOE Web site. I began sifting through the document and about five minutes later, I found a report dated Dec. 31, 2009, which listed Perdue's cash on hand as $485,124.55 for the reporting period and $374,139.74 for the election.
Registered votes in North Carolina
When searching for the number of registered voters in North Carolina, I stayed on the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site. I looked around the site, clicking on the voter information tab and using the search bar, but I was not able to find any numbers. So I went back to Google.
I searched for "number of registered voters in NC" and found a blog, TalkLeft, which listed:
Salary of Professor W. Hodding Carter
I began again with a Google search. It led me to an N&O section, about the triangle. I typed in Professor Carter's name and department but no results were found. I changed my query, but was again unsuccessful.
I went back to Google and changed my query to "NC employee salaries" and found a link to the UNC employee salary database, again via the N&O. I searched for Carter at UNC-CH and found his salary -- $106,778.
Posted by Kelly McHugh
In less than an hour I was able to this information, but I was surprised that I found it by using links in newspaper articles and blog posts. I was glad to see that journalism is still very useful in providing information, even in the cyber world. But I wonder, what will happen if all newspapers start charging for online content? Will finding information online be more difficult without access to those links?
Below I have chronicled my search for each bit of information.
Bev Perdue's cash on hand
To find Gov. Bev Perdue's cash on hand, I googled "Bev Perdue finance report cash on hand." I found several news articles, but none of them provided the exact information I needed. And those that did list numbers didn't provide links to the report, so I wasn't satisfied.
I searched the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site and was inundated with a long list of documents that I could not decipher. I opened a few of them but still didn't find the information for cash on hand.
So I went back to Google and found an article in the News & Observer that tagged Gov. Perdue. Using that tag, I was able to pull up every blog post and article mentioning the governor. I then searched for "finance report" and found a link to Perdue's campaign finance reports for 2008.
But the link led to a report from Jan. 2009, not the most recent report. But it did lead me to the correct portion of the BOE Web site. I began sifting through the document and about five minutes later, I found a report dated Dec. 31, 2009, which listed Perdue's cash on hand as $485,124.55 for the reporting period and $374,139.74 for the election.
Registered votes in North Carolina
When searching for the number of registered voters in North Carolina, I stayed on the North Carolina Board of Elections Web site. I looked around the site, clicking on the voter information tab and using the search bar, but I was not able to find any numbers. So I went back to Google.
I searched for "number of registered voters in NC" and found a blog, TalkLeft, which listed:
- Total Voters 5,791,221
- Democrats 2,616,995
- Republicans 1,933,929
Salary of Professor W. Hodding Carter
I began again with a Google search. It led me to an N&O section, about the triangle. I typed in Professor Carter's name and department but no results were found. I changed my query, but was again unsuccessful.
I went back to Google and changed my query to "NC employee salaries" and found a link to the UNC employee salary database, again via the N&O. I searched for Carter at UNC-CH and found his salary -- $106,778.
Posted by Kelly McHugh
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