News Online or Newspaper?

One of my early morning routine, if I can manage it, is to get myself a copy of newspaper, especially The Sun (because its free) to catch up with the current news. However, of late, I can hardly get my hands on any copy because its always finished by the time I arrived at the office. Since I prefer to get my news for free, I've stop buying other newspapers, be it English or Malay, for several years already. There are few reasons to this, the news are more and more crappier and who would pay for crappy news since you can get it better for free. Since there are only one title that is offered for free for the public, where else can I go than the Internet.

If I can help it, I would still try and find a hardcopy of my favorite newspaper and only if I can't borrow or steal one, only then I will go online. Since I don't make it a habit, as always, I'm the last to get update on the current/recent events. I'm a traditional kind of guy, preferring to have newspaper in one hand while coffee with the other. But seeing my other friends, they prefer to go online for news, and hardly buy a copy off the news stand.

Not having time to conduct a proper research, I asked a few colleagues and classmates, why do they prefer online news. This topic isn't really new, couple of years back, we've been asked in class why younger generation prefer online news, and three quarter of the class would say is because they would rather not pay when they can get it for free and of course, less hassle of carrying one around. No wonder kids today don't do newspaper cutting anymore.

While for some, its more of the environmental issue, read your news online and you shall save few trees.

According to onlinenewspapers.com, there are about 29 online newspaper or the virtual version of the traditional ink on paper news, in Malaysia right now. Out of these 29, there are a few that does not have the printed version of newspaper, being purely online news such as Malaysia Today.

The emerging trend of online news has started since the mid 90s where The Star Online, web version of English daily The Star became the first to offer its news online. And I did not stumble upon it until sometime 2004. In mid 90s? I can't even get myself near any computer to play games.

I would assume and I believe its fair to do so that the younger generation prefers online news only for its convenience. In most places today, it is quite easy to access the Internet, and allow us to get our news online. It is much easier and faster too. Well, you know how the Internet works. Plus, with the presence of mobile devices especially smart phones, we can now access online news portal using our phones.

An interesting paper Trends & Future of the Malaysian Mass Media, written by the President of National Union of Journalists Malaysia (NUJ), Norila Mohd Daud, discussess about the future of mass media in Malaysia, one of them being the newspaper. She mentioned that:

"The old generation between the age of 40 and above are still ardent supporters of newspapers while the younger generation to be much in tune with computers and the Internet"

While it is hard to disagree, there seems to be not much other explanation to this phenomenon. For generations already exposed to electronic devices at very early age, the Generation X and Y, it is much easier to read news while they check their email, chatting with friends through instant messaging (IM) applications, or social networking like Facebook, Friendster, Myspace and zillion others, as compared to the Baby Boomers or probably first half of Gen Y, meeting in coffee shops and having newspaper on the table.

As of 2007, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) reported that there are as many as 14.9 million Internet users, and out of this figure, I would say half would be the young people like me, accessing Internet at work, colleges and universities or whenever possible. With this, it is clear that online news would be the main venue for younger generation to get their news feed everyday.

With the presence of mobile devices and the availability of fast speed wireless Internet connection at most places and the mobile Internet network, accessing online news has never been any easier. Although the devices are very limited, as technology evolves, I'm sure there wil be more devices will be equipped with function to access online news portal. I'm sure too that soon enough, this feature will come standard, and would further kill the popularity of newspaper among the younger generation, or whatever that is left of it.

It is apparent that newspaper will go out of style with the younger generation. It is lacking the power to respond, a two way vertical communication from bottom to top between the readers and editors. The younger generation is generally very engaging, in the sense that they want to be involved, although they not always appear so. Why is that when we have so much power of publishing opinion through online means, it still only attract mostly the younger generation to leave comments (some I can tell from the 'tonal' quality of the comment left whether they are younger or older reader) compared to the veterans Internet users?

I believe, it is the power of being heard, with each and everybody's say is published for the rest of the world to see, to influence opinion or rather languishing at the system, that draws the younger generation towards online news. Besides, the nature of news offering of the online news is not the typical mainstream news, this provides alternatives to which the younger generation is accustomed to. Having the power to choose, is the main characteristics that can describe the younger generation. I would continue to choose, in which,  I would not pay for news until I feel its worthy of my money to pay or until I feel I'd become a tree hugger and stop buying newspaper or using toilet paper altogether and go purely online for news. Which ever way it is going to be, it will not be good for newspaper existence, if they don't innovate or somehow will continuously fail to attract younger readers.