Adrienne LaFrance on Journalism Today

A local newspaper reflects a bond within a community. It contains information that we share with those directly around us. It is passed from hand to hand. By turning to the internet for news, we are abandoning this sense of community. Rather than the same paper falling on ours and on our neighbors’ doorsteps, we each seek out our own source of information, whether it be local, national, or global. We trade a physical bond for  a more ethereal bond with people across the country and the world. In widening our community, we are broadening our reach but may be losing our personal identity.

I think that the shift occurring in the world of media could have long term effects on the way our society functions, politically, economically, and culturally. Here, I’m asking Adrienne LaFrance, Managing editor of The Honolulu Weekly, what she thinks. I am posing questions about the state of newspapers today, the difference that the internet has made, and what that all means.

The Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow of Newspapers, with Floyd Takeuchi

There have been few times when I learned so much in one sitting as when I sat down for coffee with Floyd Takeuchi. He’s been in (and all around)  journalism for over thirty years. When I decided I wanted to talk to someone who could see things in the long run, I figured I needed someone who’s been in it for the long run as well. Naturally, I thought of Floyd. Here, I’m asking him questions about how newspapers have changed, how they are now, and how they might be in the future. I also want to know how these changes have effected the readers so we can possibly make a prediction as to how they (we) will continue to change.

Truth in Media according to WhatReallyHappened.com

Consider Wikipedia. When it was first introduced, (and even now), it wasn’t considered a valid source of information. This is because it’s not written by one person who we can be sure is an expert on the topic. Instead, it’s a collection of facts and explanations inputted by various supposed experts, edited over and over until it’s exactly what we need to know. Anyone who uses Wikipedia knows that in fact, it’s one of the most valid sources on the internet. It’s everyone’s knowledge together and naturally unbiased because for every person that tries to input their opinion, there’s another to remove it.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about truth in media. People have been becoming less and less trusting towards large media corporations for a long time. What would happen if those corporations didn’t exist anymore? What if news was put into the hands of the public? Could there ever be such a system? When Ashton Kutcher beat CNN at being the first to have a million followers on Twitter, he said that it signified that we the people can have as loud a voice as major news outlets.

The Weekly’s “Social Lite” Super Cw on Blogs Vs. Newspapers

I’ve made this webzine into three categories for a reason. I wanted to create a juxtaposition between the way that a blogger writes, and the way that a journalist writes. The main difference, I think, is that blogs are all about the author sharing their personal opinions, thoughts, experiences… etc. A journalist or columnist, on the other hand, isn’t writing solely on their own accord. They have to constantly keep the reader in mind and make sure that what they are writing about is interesting to all those readers. They’ve gotta sell the paper, after all. 

Over the past five years, the blogosphere has exploded with life. More and more people are reading blogs as opposed to newspapers or magazines. What is it about blogs that we like so much? They are often casual, and easy to read. They offer more images, that are better quality. They’re free. And they don’t bother with being objective. Instead, the blogger lets you into their life. It’s easy to feel like you know a blogger like a close friend, even if you’ve never met them. 

Christa Wittmier, otherwise known as Super CW, is a perfect example of the lovable blogger. Her blog, Honolulu’s Nightlife Diaries, is fun to read and has so much personality in it that you feel like you’re her best friend. What makes her special is that her blog is so good that The Honolulu Weekly asked her to be their nightlife columnist. Now, she plays for both teams. Being a newspaper writer as well as a popular blogger, she has a unique understanding of the differences between the two. In other words, hers was the perfect brain for me to pick to delve deeper into the Blogs Vs. Newspapers battle.