HOW THE INTERNET IS CHANGING JOURNALISM IN NIGERIA
Just as
Gutenberg with the invention of printing press made everybody a printer, the
advent of internet has made everybody a journalist.
Gone are
the days of notepads and blue pens, tools of the trade that now belong to the
past. The internet has made the world smaller for journalists to explore, as
today we have journalists who specialize and work as online journalists,
content managers or editors for particular websites. Internet has made research
on various subject matters available via chatting and exchange of messages.
As the internet changes the face of communication journalists in Nigeria are beginning
to have a new way of packaging and disseminating news to the public.
This evolution in media practice is also unequivocally evident in the developing
countries of Africa such as Nigeria where the onset of online journalism is
gradually putting the demand of newspapers on the ware. The migration of
newspapers and television outfits to the web has been consequently accompanied
with that of its readership and viewership respectively. However, much as this
poses a dilemma, it has jolted journalists and media organizations into the
realization that being technologically sorry is the only sure means of
remaining relevant in an increasingly changing and competitive journalism, and
a good number of them are stepping up to the plate. The migration of major
newspaper outfits in the country to the internet reaffirms this. For instance,
The Punch now runs an online press which avails its readers (both local and
Diaspora) the opportunity to access news stories, and connect with the press on
a social network to access and respond to news feeds through their mobile
service. It also features opinion polls that aids in the reception of feedback
from its readers. Some other news outfits go further to accord to its readers
the liberty to upload reports of current news-worthy events within their
vicinity. Vanguard offers to its readers such as service, Daily Sun in addition
offers a search engine which enables its readers to rapidly retrieve
information on trending events. Funny enough, it also does offers, for its
fun-loving readers, a peculiar dating service.
Though
few journalists in Nigeria have access to the internet and most of them do that
in their respective places of work (without personal internet access) because
internet connection is limited to senior people especially managing editors and
senior staff notwithstanding, they are not left out of the global village. So,
journalists access internet from cyber cafes, libraries and media resource centers
and most of them still use the internet to send e-mail. Beyond sending email to
headquarters and receiving instructions from the same internet has created new
opportunities for journalists to sell stories not only to other media houses
locally but across the globe.
Another
landmark in the era of internet journalism has been the ability of the media to
harness the potentials of the worldwide web among other services provided by
the net.
Looking
at the way internet and journalism influence each other, it is obvious that the
new form of journalism is ubiquitous in structure.
The
internet has made interactions with other individuals and groups easier for
Nigerians. The new media gives users the means to generate, seek and share
content selectively. The internet has removed the barriers of space and time on
human interactions hence information can easily be obtained at a relatively low
cost.
A very
good thing about internet is that it introduces fresh voices into national
discourse on various topics and help build communities of interest through
their collections of links.
Internet
has helped journalists to attach news and as well hyperlink archives with new
stories.
FelixOlajide Talabi said “very soon, due to how fast the internet is advancing, your
right or left ear cufflinks or earrings may communicate with each other by
low-orbiting satellites and have more computer power than your present PC.
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