What I’m assuming is fairly obvious is the way that almost everyone is using social media these days. Literally everyone. From companies to newspapers to small businesses, everyone seems to be promoting their work in some way online. As a result, it was not a shock to be after reading the Pew Research Center’s “The State of the News Media 2012” article.
The article essentially summarizes how newspapers and their companies are becoming more digital and catering to the younger crowd, if you will. The Pew Research Center discusses the uses of Facebook and Twitter to promote stories as well as how the use of mobile and tablet devices are becoming the norm.
I can’t say I’m shocked at all. I own both an iPhone and an iPad and probably use them more than my laptop. They are so much more compact and easier to carry around with you. I literally don’t go anywhere without my iPhone so that right there is a sign of how much I use it. Personally, I tend not to go directly to news websites for stories, but instead follow the newspapers on Twitter. If a story that they tweet sounds interesting, then I’ll click the link to read it, but other than that, I don’t find myself reading the news at all.
I feel that this is exactly how my generation works. I don’t know many people who read the news regularly, much less read an actual newspaper! All of our content is now online, making it so much easier and accessible to almost anyone.
For the future, I feel that eventually everything will go digital. It’s sad, but there really isn’t a need for a tangible newspaper anymore and I think paper companies are starting to see that the money they use on newspapers isn’t worth it.