Hack: Death of the Newspaper

I was socialized by print media, were you?

In my youth, I can remember clearly vying to be the first one to run outside and get the newspaper to present to my Mom.  She started her day very early because she had to be at work by 7 a.m.  Before leaving however, she would read the newspaper over a cup of coffee.  I didn't know what she was reading but I listened intently for the various sounds of agreement, disagreement and even laughter that would come from this morning ritual.  I would wait patiently until she left for work to retrieve the paper and look to see what had been so interesting.  Although I did not understand much of what I read, I learned at an early age that this was the way to start your day  I had to make sure to fold the paper just as she left it, because on her return from work, she would read the paper more thoroughly and be very upset if a section was missing or out of place.  I guess it was then that I decided that this paper held a lot of power and understanding and I wanted desperately to understand.  

By the time I was a teenager, my Mom was by now so busy with life, work and raising three kids on her own, she barely had the energy to read the newspaper so she viewed the news on the television over that cup of coffee.  But the paper still came religiously and I still read it.  I understood more and now I was the one making sounds of agreement, disagreement and laughter and would often engage her in conversation about the things I read.  Now I know that I was socialized to believe that the paper was a great source of information on various topics and I had the upper hand in many conversations because I had been privy to this medium which held a wealth of information.  That is no longer the case for my generation and the ones that have and will follow.  

It is my belief that most people of this generation and younger generations do not read newspapers or magazines because they have not had the example that I had as a youth.  Their parents and role models accessed information via the television.  They now access their information via the world wide web.  And while I believe that some information is better than no information at all, I truly believe that these short snippets of news are not as informative as a newspaper or magazine article.  If you really want to know all background, the major players, the consequences, the solutions, e.t.c. of a particular event, read the newspaper or magazine article.  To truly get the five W's (Who, What, When, Where and Why) read the paper.  I have been socialized to do so, have you?

Media in Egypt is Controlled by President Mubarak

It is seems that the decline of print media maybe affecting Egypt as well but for political reasons and not convenience as it is in the U.S.  My research shows that there are approximately 18 printed newspapers and printed periodicals and over 60 online media outlets in Egypt. The fact that there are so many more online media sites than printed media maybe attributed to the fact that the government owns a controlling stock in the three major daily newspapers: Al-Ahram, Al-Akhbar, and Al-Gumhuriya. The president also appoints the editors of these dailies so he controls the messages that the public receives. Fourteen political parties also have their own media but because they get money from the government, the President controls their information as well.   It is obvious why the Internet is important to anyone who is in opposition to the government.  If you have distrust in the government and oppose the way the country is being run, you distrust the media that is controlled by the government.  Because you have to be licensed by the Egyptian government to even start a newspaper, the chances of an anti-government group receiving a license is slim to none.  It should be noted that radio and television programming is also controlled by the government, but satellite stations are popping up to circumvent this.

Of the over 80 million people who inhabit Egypt, 1,400,000 have computers and 450,000 have Internet access.  I believe that in the case of the Egyptian uprising against the government, the people had to become the media out of necessity to let the world know what is really going on and not what the government says is going on.  This is why the government tried to limit this information by shutting off the Internet services.  However, that move only proved that the people were not being allowed to freely express themselves in their country which is a republic, a government that is supposedly a representative democracy in which the people's elected deputies represent the needs and wants of the people. Doesn’t seem to be the case, right?!  Many people are questioning why the world did not know about the social unrest in Egypt.  It’s really quite simple; a government-run media cannot be effective.  What do you think?

To check my sources:(http://www.pressreference.com/Co-Fa/Egypt.html and http://www.onlinenewspapers.com/egypt.htm.

Check out this article on the decline of print journalism and tell what you think

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/business/media/29carr.html

The Decline of Print Media and Rise of Electronic Media

It is sad to say, but I think that the day of printed media, i.e. newspapers/news magazines is on the way out. Most people, even myself, access most of my news and information online. Why pay 75 cents or $1.50 for a paper when I can go online and access several? I still receive the Sunday paper but cost and convenience find me at the computer accessing news everyday. My concern however is that online editions of different printed media may not be as thorough as they should be because they are in a race to get information out as soon as possible to scoop competitive online editions.  As the older generations who still get paper media leave this life, the younger generations who now access everything online, will more than likely precipitate the decline of printed media.  Most papers are cutting costs and going online for this very reason.  Is this a good thing or bad Do you feel printed papers and news magazines are still relevant? What do you think?