Information technologies play an increasingly important role in the dissemination of news and information to consumers. The digital age has enabled journalists to implement the latest technologies such as satellite newsgathering systems, computer-assisted reporting, wireless mobile communications and digital cameras to provide consumers with a more diverse range and greater access to news and information online.
One particularly important technology of digital journalism is that of computer-assisted reporting (CAR). “Computer-assisted news reporting refers to anything that uses computers to aid in the news gathering process.� (Cox, 2000) Journalists now have the ability to access information almost instantaneously to add depth and context to their stories and articles through the use of online databases. “CAR is essentially the marriage of technical capacity with the sort of analysis and synthesis that marks strong enterprise and explanatory journalism.� (Garrison, 1996: 6)
Another technology employed by journalists in the digital age is the use of wireless mobile communications. “Wireless is a term used to describe telecommunications in which electromagnetic waves carry a signal over a part or all of the communication path.� (Baruch, 2004) Common examples of wireless equipment used by journalists include the following:
These forms of wireless technologies used in conjunction with one another, allow journalists to transmit instantaneously, text, audio and images. As a result, the general public is able to access detailed news online as soon as it happens. It is through the convergence of these technologies that has enabled journalism to move into the online and digital world. (Pavlik, 2001: 108)
Digital cameras are another popular technology used in digital journalism. Digital cameras enable journalists to capture megapixel images and footage that are of high quality and resolution. These cameras are particularly useful for journalists as the images and video captured, can be stored and transmitted via email attachment or through wireless devices. (Kawamoto, 2003: 78) The issue of photojournalism ethics, however, should be considered in regards to the use of digital cameras. The temptation to use new media technology to change images to make them more newsworthy raises some great ethical concerns in the field of journalism.
"Digital communication and technology is one of the most exciting, rapidly expanding fields of study and practice throughout the world, as witnessed by the increasing number of websites and users of the internet." (Ludlow, 1996: 11) Due to the development of these technologies, information can be transmitted, gathered and accessed quickly and effortlessly.
Baruch, L. (2004) Wireless [Online]. Available: http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid7_gci213380,00.html [Accessed October 15, 2004]
Cox, M. The Development of Computer Assisted Reporting, [Online], 2000. Available: http://www.miami.edu/com/car/cox00.htm [Accessed 5 Sep. 2004].
Garrison, B. (1996) Successful Strategies for Computer-Assisted Reporting, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
Kawamoto, K. (2003) Digital Journalism: Emerging Media and the Changing Horizons of Journalism, Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Inc.
Ludlow, P. (1996) High Noon on the Electronic Frontier: Conceptual Issues in Cyberspace, Cambridge: MIT Press.
Kellie McCall 17:39, 19 Oct 2004 (EST)
