News Carriers in the Digital Age
Sunday, September 27, 2009 by Jess Leijh
With the expansion of digital technology, the availability of news has also expanded. Yet there are different places that newsworthy events are documented and discussed.
SNS have become a sort of news carrier, although relatively biased dependent on who you are exposed to. Sites such as Facebook often reflect topical issues as people post information on these issues and/or discuss them. For example, last year after National was elected, my news feed was completely filled with comments about the outcome, also people joining groups for or against particular politicians/parties. With the development of statuses and creating groups, Facebook enables the community to put their view across on topical issues, furthered in Facebook polls. Recently, one could vote on the Facebook poll for or against the smacking bill, another topical issue.
These current events also display entertainment news. The death of superstars are mentioned (e.g Michael Jackson), and 'scandals' are discussed. An example of this is the recent music awards where Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift's speech as she received the award for best solo female music video. Although I do not follow these musicians, Facebook made sure I didn't miss out. Members of Facebook are even able to Vote for 'Team Taylor' or 'Team Kanye' on a poll, and quizzes such as 'When will Kanye interrupt you?' were set up. This reflects how SNS can be news carriers of our generation (although limited).
SNS have become a sort of news carrier, although relatively biased dependent on who you are exposed to. Sites such as Facebook often reflect topical issues as people post information on these issues and/or discuss them. For example, last year after National was elected, my news feed was completely filled with comments about the outcome, also people joining groups for or against particular politicians/parties. With the development of statuses and creating groups, Facebook enables the community to put their view across on topical issues, furthered in Facebook polls. Recently, one could vote on the Facebook poll for or against the smacking bill, another topical issue.
These current events also display entertainment news. The death of superstars are mentioned (e.g Michael Jackson), and 'scandals' are discussed. An example of this is the recent music awards where Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift's speech as she received the award for best solo female music video. Although I do not follow these musicians, Facebook made sure I didn't miss out. Members of Facebook are even able to Vote for 'Team Taylor' or 'Team Kanye' on a poll, and quizzes such as 'When will Kanye interrupt you?' were set up. This reflects how SNS can be news carriers of our generation (although limited).
