So, Where Do People Get Their News In The Future?

And, do they pay for it?

With all these layoffs, the impending death of print, I ask where will people get their news? And, will they pay for it?

Imagine being a 16-year-old girl who spends her life on Facebook and Myspace and Twitter. And you have never bought or read a newspaper. You've ripped your friends' CDs, pirated a few songs and CDs via torrents and download movies the same way. You get your "news" from the 24-hour cable news cycle — when you're not waiting for TMZ.

Then one day, you're 22. You're paying taxes, can't find a job, are thinking of moving, whatever. How will you know about the current political situation? The economy? The city you're planning to move to?

Remember, that's six years later and most papers are dead and their respective websites are shutting down because people finally realized you can't make money off a free product and it's too late to charge.

What the hell happens then? Is journalism dead, too?

Where is this business — print, TV and radio — heading? And, how can anyone make money off it in the future?

 

Already been imagined:

 

I think it's obvious we'll need to find a way to make money off the news one way or another. I think there's a possibility we can start making significant money from online advertising, but I think it's a long way off. Don't think there are many places that can provide news for free.
What concerns me is the middle part of your post, and what is going to be missed. I still think newspapers are the best at organizing the news and telling you what you need to know, whether you think you need to know it or not. I think there needs to be some sort of standardized way for the news to be organized online (as it has been for many decades in newspapers). And I think that day will come, too.
I don't think there's any doubt everyone will be getting their news electronically in some fashion. Very soon.
I don't think journalism is dead at all. But it's going to take time to adjust. And it's going to be painful. Probably moreso than it already has been.

 

That's been my question forever. People have no idea how dependent the whole news cycle is on the work of daily newspapers.

The work they do gets instantly poached by AP and TV and radio, and that gets the ball rolling.

 

Most likely, some sort of stream on a computer or cell phone. Because eventually, cell phones are going to replace computers as the do-everything item that people rely on for email, Web surfing, etc. It's already starting to happen.

I just refuse to believe that journalism is going to die as a profession. The Internet is replacing the vehicle for information-spreading. It's not replacing the desire. People are always going to want information, even if the vehicle changes.

If only someone could find a way to make money in the process. I'd really prefer not to go into PR. Sigh.

 

I was about to say. You say "eventually" like it's far off. People have relying on their PDAs/Blackberries/cell phones for a number of years now. I'm habitually behind the times and my cell phone has had that capability since at least 2006.

 

If I was a publisher I'd be worried. Nobody is buying ads online and they've given up on the proven print product.
I would think the major websites like yahoo.com; cnn.com; espn.com; cbssportsline.com will continue to be the winners financing the websites with other revenue sources as well.
Papers are out of luck.

 

Holograms.

(OK, I actually have strong thoughts on this, but it's too late and I'm too tired to do them justice now. I'll be back.)

 

Very true. What I really meant was that things like magazines, newspapers (or the equivalent of whatever it is newspapers will be in the future) in their entirety and pretty much any other form of non-digital media will likely be available with the click of a button on your cell phone. And that hasn't ENTIRELY happened yet. But I think it's definitely where we're headed.

 

You're talking about the delivery system, which is not the issue. Who discovers and writes the news that you get on your cellphone or Blackberry or whatever?

That's the point. Without the large reporting staffs of daily papers, where does the news originate?

 

"That's the point. Without the large reporting staffs of daily papers, where does the news originate?"

A few central news bureaus.