2. Internet news access and audience
• Reading news stories online (as opposed to
watching news broadcasts) is the most
common way of accessing news through the
internet (54%)
• 20% of those who access the internet for news
watch TV news online
3. The Democratisation of the News
• Internet has made it easier than ever to access news –
people are reading what they want to read, accessing the
kind of news they want
• Chris Cramer from Reuters has talked about the rise of
Citizen Journalism – most compelling pictures come from
eye-witnesses (with their phones) to the actual event.
‘Social media is the news gathering of the first resort…’
• Advances in technology mean audiences can chronicle
news and offer it to institutions
• News institutions need to recognise the validity of eye-
witness accounts if they are to compete successfully
• The journalist’s role will have to include the checking and
verifying of content provided by an audience generating
news stories themselves
4. • The internet has allowed interactivity in a way
that TV news cannot – people can search for
specific stories; comment on them; share clips
and stories; listen to radio news; post their own
news-related clips/comments/articles; listen
to/watch news podcasts; subscribe to
personalised news information; use a news
ticker/rolling news across the screen; receive
email alerts or notification of news; watch clips;
read and/or blog/post news on social network
sites – and, of course, these features can be
accessed anywhere from handheld devices
rather than just sitting in front of a computer.
5. Internet news access and audience
• Of the various website/app sources, Twitter is
rated the highest by its users for offering a
range of opinions but only a minority of its
users rate it for accuracy or impartiality. Not
surprisingly the BBC website or app is well-
rated fairly solidly by its users for importance,
accuracy, trustworthiness, impartiality, and for
offering a range of opinions.
6. Internet news access and audience
• Facebook is rated highly for importance and a
range of opinions, but considerably less so for
all the other factors.
• Sky News website and app is also well-rated
fairly solidly across all features – as are Yahoo
News and Google News.
• The key to this is that it details the response of
people who USE these sources – it’s not the
response of people who don’t use them.
7. Contemporary Issues and Debates
• Digital news technology revolutionised news broadcasting –
sharper images; live news streaming of breaking stories;
allowing audiences to interact with mews institutions – and
even to con tribute to broadcast news – the use of moving
imagery taken from people’s phones were used in the
coverage of the 7 July 2005 terrorist attacks, for example,
or in the conflict in Libya.
• BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 all use text and email voting
and opinion polls to measure audience interest and
participation
• ITV afternoon news has a section in which viewers voice
their opinions via mobile video messages
• News is available 24 hours a day on the internet and digital
channels and breaking news is a regular event in everyday
life.
