Media Blog #2

There used to be a time when the news was less of an importance and more of a dull and boring waste of space and ink. However, in recent years, this previously abhorred set of information has become a rather prominent and exciting aspect of my every day life. It was when I got to college that I realized how easily accessible the news had been while at home and that I was missing the daily dose of information, so I decided to take action, set my browser home page to CNN.com and subscribe to TIME magazine.

This year has been exceptionally information laden now that I have access to receiving a print newspaper on campus and I have found myself constantly seeking out ways to glean facts about what is going on in the world around me.

Looking at the front page of the New York Times has always seemed rather trying; I have often found the layout confusing and inconsistent. Typically, I had been used to seeing the front page of a newspaper equipped with a large, centered photo and the correlating story right underneath, however, NYT is not always uniform with this. Today, on Tuesday, November 16, 2009 the front page actually provides two large photos and does provide the story right after that. In comparison, the online version of NYT is much more versatile, due to the fact that it is not constrained to space limits and word count boundaries. The photos are able to be large and high resolution and there is no doubt that the online version will always be much more accurate and up to date.

One thing that the print version of NYT has is very good headlines and drawing ledes. Because of space confinements, writers are forced to get creative and compact with their words, providing a good overview for the skimming reader. With print, you have the ability to interact directly whereas it can sometimes be difficult to do so with an online article where links provide distractions and draw the reader away from the main article.

In contrast with another popular publication, the Los Angeles Times, the NYT definitely has both its advantages and disadvantages. The online version at LAtimes.com is much more organized, simple and streamlined. Many would say that this is a disadvantage in comparison to the NYT online, but I find it very helpful and aesthetically pleasing. The stories are organized and it is clear which headlines and pictures belong to which stories. The ledes offered in the online version of the LA times are just as compelling and informative as those found on the front page of the print and online NYT.

Most likely a thing of my generation, but I feel that newspapers are increasingly less and less useful and that more people are turning to the online medium as a way of getting the most accurate and up to date news. The question now is what to do with all those leftover newspapers?