Hayley Rayment 15:41, 27 Jul 2004 (EST)
Bowd, K. (2002) “Left in technology’s wake? Codes of ethics and online news,� Australian Journalism Review, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 41-59.
In this article, Bowd applies the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance Journalists’ Code of Ethics to online journalism. She explains how codes of ethics originated in print media, and were updated to consider broadcast media but are yet to refer to online news. She insightfully explains the paramount importance of ethics in online journalism, as such information is available around the world and archived in easy to access online databases.
Bowd examines the conflict between choosing to publish immediate information or accurate information, and how this issue is exacerbated in an online environment. She also demonstrates some ethical dilemmas unique to journalism on the internet. Hyperlinks, for example, are a valuable tool in online journalism but monitoring the content and quality of linked websites should be monitored and the audience should be warned that the linked site is not part of the news website.
Bowd investigates the idea of a code of ethics specifically for online journalism by examining its pros and cons. She argues in favour of retaining one code but updating it regularly to address the growing medium of online journalism.
Boynton, R. (2000) “New Media May Be Old Media’s Savior� Columbia Journalism Review, vol. 39, no.2 pp. 29,34.
Boynton’s article deals with the effect new media will have on print journalism. He argues that the internet will not replace newspapers, but that the mediums can complement each other. He suggests that newspapers are suitable for publication on websites. He even tells of the development of an electronic newspaper that can download news from a computer or phone line to appear in a special grid between two sheets of plastic. He also suggests that some magazines are improving their reputations and breaking news more frequently by going online.
Boynton suggests the future will bring further blurring between the mediums. Throughout the article he persuasively argues that the internet will benefit old media rather than replace it.
Cohen, E. (2002) “Online Journalism as Market-Driven Journalism�, Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, vol. 46, no. 4, pp. 532-548.
In this article, Cohen examines the conflict of commercial and news interests on how journalists tell the news. She draws particular attention to how this issue affects online journalism and provides an interesting perspective on the relationship between news and advertising on the internet. She explains this by referring to the practices of centralisation, news structure and immediacy. She then calls for further research into the relationship between online media and its audiences.
Some interesting arguments raised by Cohen include the difficulties in targeting specific advertisers as a news site’s audience can vary greatly in demographics of users and frequency of visits. Another interesting point was that the most popular online news sites belong to well-known television or print media organisations.
Deuze, M. (2003) “The web and its journalisms: considering the consequences of different types of newsmedia online,� New Media & Society, vol. 5, no. 2, pp.203-230.
Deuze discusses how the world wide web has impacted journalism. He identifies types of online journalism ranging from mainstream news sites, index and category sites, meta and comment sites to share and discussion sites. Deuze discusses these regarding their incorporation of online journalism characteristics. He identifies these characteristics to be hypertext, inaction and multimedia.
Deuze highlights that the incorporation of these online characteristics is significant in transforming journalism from its traditional approach to meet the challenges of the future. He explains that these changes in format deeply affect journalism as both a profession and a culture. Part of this is a shift in focus from individual content to connections with other content and media. This theme of change in journalistic culture is examined in detail, as Deuze acknowledges a shift in thinking is the bigger step towards successful online journalism than a shift in technology.
De Wolk, R. (2001) Introduction to Online Journalism: Publishing News and Information, Needham Heights, MA.: Allyn and Bacon, ISBN 0205286895.
De Wolk’s text covers a vast range of content from computer-assisted reporting techniques to convergence and issues of copyright. It contains basic instructional information as well as interesting articles by other writers on various topics. Although the book is well organised and informative throughout, chapter ten is of particular interest.
In chapter ten De Wolk ponders the future of online journalism. He examines its potential weaknesses, such as the possibility of some news websites that are biased or unreliable. He even expressed concern that online niche publications could create social divisions, or quite simply be written by members of the general public despite appearing to be official journalism. De Wolk also raises a very interesting point about the conflict between breaking a news story immediately on the internet and tipping off other news outlets, or waiting to break the news in another medium. De Wolk then focuses on the opportunities available in this relatively new medium and emphasises the focus on multimedia and technological advance for the future of journalism.
Froomkin, D. (2004) “Ideas for Online Publications: Lessons From Blogs, Other Signposts,� Online Journalism Review, retrieved August 9, 2004, from http://ojr.org/ojr/workplace/1085603014.php.
Froomkin calls for online news to develop further and faster. He explains even newspapers that upload their stories to the internet are not adapting them sufficiently for the medium. He explains the highly visual nature of the internet, and the distinct need for multimedia in online news stories. He also argues to encompass the use of blogs further into online journalism, as it allows for interaction between readers and for immediate commentary on news and other issues. Froomkin also suggests focusing on the audience and monitoring web traffic so as to gauge what kind of information people are seeking from the site. He also advocates passion and ambition for online journalism.
Hall, J. (2001) Online Journalism : A Critical Primer, London: Pluto Press, ISBN 0745311938.
In this text, Hall thoroughly covers a broad range of issues regarding online journalism. He examines the world wide web, news, audiences, ethical issues, hypertext and web design. He provides recent examples of real life news events, and describes the use of online journalism in those instances. For example, in the war in Kosovo, television news viewers were not provided with all the information due to the way the information was packaged. Online news of the war, however, showed the extent of the disaster more freely.
Hall always raises the issue of information overload. He explains how the immense size of cyberspace allows for huge numbers of online news sites which can be intimidating for the audience. He also delves deep into complicated issues of censorship, privacy and surveillance.
Millison, D. (2004) “Online Journalism FAQ,� retrieved August 9, 2004, from http://home.comcast.net/~dougmillison/faq.html.
Millison’s collection of frequently asked questions and answers provides a basic insight into online journalism. He succinctly states the advantages and features of online journalism. These include the ability to publish news events as they happen, the incorporation of various multimedia elements, increased interaction for audience members through use of hyperlinks and email and greater accessibility of archived material.
Millison also looks into the issues of advertising online, editorial standards on linking to non-credible sites, risks to traditional publications and the general reliability of online journalism. He suggests the medium will continue to grow and prosper and with time may become more and more personalised for individual users.
Ward, M. (2002) Journalism Online, Oxford, Great Britain: Focal Press, ISBN 0240516109.
In this comprehensive text, Ward teaches aspects of online journalism ranging from how to write online news stories, tips on HTML to general information on the medium.
As this book is largely instructional, it contains comprehensive description of the differences in writing style needed for online stories as opposed to regular print stories. As people tend to scan when reading on the net, news stories need to be shorter and contain sub-headings and lists to keep the audience’s attention. Hypertext can also be used to split long articles across multiple pages.
Of particular interest was Ward’s detailed coverage of the advantages of online journalism. These advantages are immediacy, global reach, multimedia, archives, links and interactivity.
Ward also raises some key issues to consider when designing a journalistic web resource. These considerations are based around issues of communication, technology, organisation, navigation and overall structure and design. Ward even examines the finer details like colour schemes and font types. He explains the importance of these minor decisions and offers tips on the most appropriate choices.
Wendland, M. (2002) “Convergence: Repurposing Journalism,� Poynteronline, retrieved August 12, 2004, from http://www.poynteronline.org/dg.lts/id.14558/content.content_view.htm.
This article deals with the growing phenomenon of convergence in the media. It provides a brief case study of a news corporation in Tampa USA called Media General. Media General owns the local newspaper, TV station and online news website and reproposes its content for use in each of these mediums.
Wendland quotes opinions from both sides of the convergence debate, providing good insight into the pros and cons of repurposing journalism. Those in favour of repurposing argue it is about giving the public more options of how to access the news, and about attracting audiences, sharing resources and being financially efficient. Those against convergence say the practice may impair independence of the press and limit job opportunities in journalism.
Hayley Rayment 08:03, 13 Aug 2004 (EST)
