The onset of the digital newspaper was a looming reality. “The Daily” is a news application for the iPad developed by the News Corporation (Peters and Stelter 2011). Rupert Murdoch of the News Corporation stated in a recent article in the New York Times that “New times demand new journalism” These “new times” imply the concept of a digitalized society. In this type of digitalized environment humans are used to having information directed right to their fingertips. Smart phones, portable computers and the invention of social networks are enabling products like The Daily to be produced, and hopefully, be successful.
The concept of a digital-only newspaper is a clean example of computer mediated communication (CMC). The definition of CMC according to Wood and Smith is “the study of ways in which human behaviors are maintained and altered by exchange of information through machines.” (Wood and Smith 2005) The concept of this article clearly pertains to the change of behavior with the arrival of new technologies in our culture today. Rupert Murdoch of News Corporation points out the effects of CMC when he says this new product was targeted for iPad users who want “content tailored to their specific interests to be available anytime, anywhere.” In 2011, those specific interests are technologically centered. In a digitalized society we “share and store just about everything in a computer-readable format of 1’s and 0’s” (Reardon Lecture Notes). Note that “The Daily takes that same sensibility to the digital age by trying to enliven the printed word with photographs, video and interactive features that work seamlessly together.” (Peters and Stelter 2011). We are no longer satisfied with a printed piece of news. Even the television news channels are fading into static. Bloggers and social media users have become interactive in displaying news and we expect that same level of interactivity with our news sources. The Daily can accommodate those expectations.
In Wood and Smith’s Online Communication they identify the term mediated communication in which “communicators are separated by some type of technology.” They point out that this technology can be a piece of paper or a text message on a cell phone. (Wood and Smith 2005). This separation is becoming more apparent as we move further into an era of digitalization. But is this separation a good thing? We’ve become so accustomed to communicating through technology that face time is valued and sometimes even awkward. Mediated communication might be the only thing we know in a few years. Sure there will be physical interactions between communicators but the majority of business today is taking place online. We are growing more and more efficient with our technologies. iPad users can now generate live streaming news directly to their devices via the News Corporation. Smart phones have done this for a while, but the idea that a newspaper company has gone completely digital, is somewhat of a landmark. Alan D. Mutter comments in The New York Times article that “There’s always the danger you’ll be too first,” (Peters and Stelter 2011). iPad users may or may not adopt this product right away. This idea of a digital-only newspaper might be “too new”. Sarah Rotman Epps says “Success will come in small numbers.” Adaptation to this digitalized, mediated communication, will take time. Maybe the News Corporation has taken the plunge into something our society needs to get used to.
Works Cited
February 2, 2011. “News Corporation Introduces ‘The Daily’, the Digital-Only Newspaper.” The New York Times, Business Day. Peters and Stelter. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/03/business/media/03daily.html?_r=1&smid=tw-nytimesbusiness
Online Communication: Linking Technology, Identity and Culture. Wood and Smith. 2005. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 4-7
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