Media Change

Is there ever such thing as a "new media"? This is a question, which is often asked as media develops.

Is all new media just a development of old media? This isn’t the first time that this has been suggested, but for me it is coming more and more apparent. Before distinguishing what new media is, we have to establish what old media is and the context that comes with it. Old media is more specifically traditional print media; mainly newspapers, but it also includes network radio and television. Through my research it has become obvious that slowly old media is being transferred into new media to suit the needs of society. An easily identifiable example of this includes newspapers investing heavily in websites in order to keep their readership. With a drastic development in the internet, the buying and selling of newspapers is decreasing. Whilst they are trying to stake bigger claims online, one new publication is pulling material off the internet to be printed in ink.

John Wilpers, editor in chief of Boston Now, the publication which was only introduced last month, said he wanted to fill the paper with items that local bloggers submitted to the Boston Now Web site. This reiterates the fact that even though old media is still present in our everyday life, it is vital to use new media to continue with a high percentage of readership. People will still buy newspapers as they are convenient, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that someone running down the street with a camera and microphone will create the reports. Instead, it is likely that the information presented in the newspapers, will have originally been developed from the Internet, or other new media devices.

There is no escaping the development of technology and as I grow up this becomes more apparent. My whole life revolves around the use of technology and this is only going to get worse. My phone for example, isn’t a phone; it’s in fact a mini computer. It is capable of going on the Internet, accessing emails as well as capturing photographs.  The impact these pieces of technology have on society is mammoth and furthermore is the focus of current change. It seems impossible to imagine, but eventually everything I consider new media will be old media. In years to come, technology will develop even more and we will all be presented with new forms of new media. I believe that this will be forever the case, as society develops, so will technology.  

There are many questions about when does something stop being new media and transfers to old media... New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged into our everyday vocabulary in the latter part of the 20^th century. Usage and the discovery of the Internet is an example of new media, similarly when using the Internet to create podcasts and blogs, this also is an example of using new media in todays society. Primarily new media is web-based, but it also can include some television or radio sources. 

Technology is constantly developing and this will remain the way forever. There always are new inventions that beat a previous, all supplying the audience with something new and exciting. It is a common concept that we want our devices to have consistency, forgiveness and product stability.