"I used to faithfully watch the news, but now I find it discouraging...and with my job, I just don't have time to watch all of the news I should..." Mrs. Harlow* remarked sadly. Without missing a beat Mrs. Martin* responded, "I get my news from Facebook. If there is something important happening my friends will be talking about it, then I will go look up more information if I'm concerned." "Oh, I guess I get my news on the radio because it's easiest. But, when I get the chance, I do watch Fox news..." Ms. Smith* replied.
These interviews took my by surprise. Despite the decades, no matter the advancements in technology, amid differences, there is still a prevailing reason for how and even why people get their news. It truly hasn't changed much over time. We see the news that is most convenient to get. Our time and lives go by fast, so if something isn't easy to find or convenient to learn about, we may never know it exists.
"I'm really not the best person to ask about that. I really don't watch the news at all." My first interviewee, Mrs. Harlow's reply showed that she viewed getting news as watching it on TV. She only guiltily admitted that she usually used Facebook to stay updated on events and quickly wanted to explain that she still stayed informed without TV. As a young woman, she read the papers that she sold on her paper route, but, when it became more available, she switched to TV to get her news and finally to Internet.
Mrs. Martin's and Mrs. Harlow's pattern of getting news over their lives I found relatively similar. Mrs. Martin also got most of her information about local and worldwide news from TV until using the Internet became a more accessible. "I just look up things that I hear about on the news websites. It saves me time and I can learn about what I want to hear about, and not be overwhelmed with all the news."
Besides the fact that she began news-journey by reading the papers, Ms. Smith had little in common with the older ladies I interviewed. She explained to me how she rarely used the Internet and watched Fox News when she could, but the majority of her knowledge of events and politics came from listening to the radio. With her job and many classes, she spends much time driving, therefore the radio is the most accessible source of news for her. "Why do I use the radio? Because it's convenient." was Ms. Smith's response.
One thing that was similar between Ms. Smith and Mrs. Harlow was their thoughts on what is up-coming for news media. They both think alerts through phones will be the next big push, which I believe is already happening in some places. Mrs. Martin had a different opinion however, that streaming the Internet news through your TV is closer on the horizon. And she seems to be right. As our worlds grow bigger with all the information we are bombarded by, we are looking for faster, easier, simpler ways of getting the news we need. Truthfully, we are looking for convenience.
*Names changed for privacy.
No comments:
Post a Comment