by Mark Ollig
Due
in large part to the Internet, we are finding ourselves being exposed to
greater amounts of news and information.
Throughout
the day, countless news sources are broadcasting their stories to the public
using a variety of mediums.
These
sources utilize websites, with live-streaming news feeds, online citizen
reporters, videocasters, podcasters, and bloggers.
There
are also social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook, providing news
content, as well.
And,
of course, information originates from 24-hour cable news networks.
It
seems just about everyone in the world is typing out their individual opinions
concerning the news of the day; as they can be seen flooding the comments
sections of most mainstream websites and social media networks.
In
a seemingly by-gone era, before this torrent of news reporting and commenting
was augmented by the Internet, life was a bit different.
Each
new day found most folks learning of the overnight news developments while
reading their traditional print media; namely, the morning newspaper.
This
newspaper was delivered early each morning to their front door, by the town’s
local newspaper carrier.
Throughout
the working day, people stayed up-to-date with current news events by listening
to the top-of-the-hour radio broadcasts, or by catching a quick news update on
a television set during lunch breaks.
When
they came home from work, the evening paper would be waiting for them.
As
a youngster, I recall two separate Minneapolis newspapers being printed each
day. There was an early morning and late afternoon edition. Each contained
state, national, and world news.
Of
course, most small towns publish their own newspaper, serving the people who
live and work there.
These
papers provide the local news and goings-on in the community, and are usually
printed once a week.
Going
back years before the Internet, television, and even radio, newspapers were the
main source of our news.
The
oldest continuously-published newspaper I could find still being printed is
located in Britain.
It
was originally called The Oxford Gazette. It first appeared in November 1665; a
few months later, it was renamed The London Gazette.
Its
beginnings came about in order for it to meet “the need for authoritative
news.”
The
London Gazette obtained news outside of Britain during peace time via its
foreign correspondents, and from British generals during times of war.
Its
website is located at http://www.london-gazette.co.uk.
The
oldest continuously-published newspaper in the US is The Hartford Courant. It
began publishing Oct. 29, 1764.
More
information about the history of The Hartford Courant can be found at:
http://tinyurl.com/bytes-courant.
The
honor for the first American newspaper goes to a Boston publication published
by Benjamin Harris, called “Publick Occurrences.” It was printed in 1690.
It
was four pages long, and had just one issue. Its stated purpose was to “report
the news accurately and fairly.”
You
can learn more about America’s first newspaper at
http://tinyurl.com/bytes-news1.
By
the end of the 18th century, some 235 newspapers were operating in the US.
The
first commercial radio station in the US began broadcasting in 1920 in
Pittsburgh, using the call letters KDKA.
On
Nov. 2, 1920, KDKA transmitted over-the-air, the results of the Nov. 2, 1920 US
presidential election.
It
was broadcast to the approximately 1,000 people who had earlier learned of the
KDKA’s existence, and had gone out and obtained or built their own radio
receivers.
Leo
Rosenberg was radio’s first announcer.
He
voiced the broadcast from KDKA of Warren G. Harding becoming the 29th president
of the US.
Today’s
tech-savvy, social-media generation is getting a lot of their news online;
however, a recent study finds print and television as still being the source
mostly used by people for getting their news.
Media
Insight Project, an initiative of the American Press Institute and the
Associated Press, published the study.
It
said the majority of Americans “across generations now combine a mix of sources
and technologies to get their news each week.”
Of
those asked in the study how they obtained their news, 24 percent said
television, desk or laptop computers. Cellphones came in at 12 percent, and
mobile tablet computing devices polled at 4 percent.
The
study reported 45 percent of Americans saying they had no favorite device or
technology for getting their news.
I
still feel traditional media, such as newspapers, television, radio, magazines,
and books, continue to be an important source of news and information – even in
this age of digital access to these sources over the Internet.
One
of the first things I do each workday morning (while the eggs are cooking on
the stove), is to turn on my MacBook computer, jump on the Internet, and visit
a few news websites for a quick check of what occurred overnight, and to learn
of any late-breaking bulletins.
On
weekends, along with my morning cup of coffee, I enjoy spending time reading
through the printed newspaper.
Being
on the Internet each day, I will, of course, check on those up-to-the-minute
news reports.
And
yes, yours truly regularly visits his hometown’s online digital newspaper, and
subscribes to its print edition, too.
