I heard a rumour some time back that with
the advent of social media, print media was heading for the gallows. As to who
propagated this rumour, I cannot tell, but
there is this fear that print media will be going into extinction soon. Well,
with the ever increasing advancement of technology and the need for things to
be done quickly and now; it will not be entirely hazardous to project the
irrelevance of print media in the not so distant future.
Why am I saying this? It is because of the
change factor that is sometimes ignored in our daily interactions. Ever since
the creation of the universe, man has gone through series of changes. The
controversial scientist, Charles Darwin, argues that man was not fashioned in a
certain form as the biblical theorists make us believe; they actually evolved
from specie to the other. Not only has man changed; everything he has ever made
has gone through phases as well. Take the telephone and the television for
instance, these are electronic gadgets that have seen rapid metamorphosis over
the decades.
So what is the fear of print media going
into extinction? The obvious is inevitable; there will come a point in time
when any form of print material will be retired to the shelves of history. It
will be rare to see people holding, for instance, a newspaper or a magazine, just
as it is rare now to see people in 21st century Ghana who do not own
mobile phones. However, this phenomenon should not overwhelm publishers, rather,
it should be something that should spur them on to be innovative and find new
ways of staying in the trade.
Come to think of it, it is actually a
blessing in disguise. Can you imagine how fresh and safe the environment will
be if all the trees are left alone to give us the oxygen we need?
That was just by the way. Think of it this
way; research has proven that those without adequate social interaction are
twice as likely to die prematurely which means, people need information to survive, to
know what is going on around them, and they will go to every length to get it. Information has become a commodity; the one who wields news
is the one with all the power, and print media being a channel by which
information can be accessed possesses that much power.
Therefore I believe those
who are not creative and innovative are the ones crying foul. Recently, on
trying to source information from the internet, I bumped into a site that would
not grant me access to any information until I have subscribed. That was when
it dawned on me; print media cannot die, it can evolve. By evolution I mean
going digital; simply taking advantage of the opportunities of the new age
technology like the internet and repositioning itself.
Today, everybody can
have access to information if they own a mobile phone. People have adapted to
the new way of doing things in other to survive in their environment. The good
news is that print media would not have to worry about orienting people on how
to use the technology: People are already privy to it.
The argument could also
be about the cost of setting up a digital platform. However, in comparing the
cost of printing, for instance a newspaper, to developing a website, the latter
is less costly. Another advantage is that people do not have need for dead news
therefore the newspapers that are not sold become dross, unlike the internet
where people can have access to new information and refer to old news anytime.
Since it has already
been established that people need information to survive, they will do anything
to get it, even if it means subscribing. After all don’t they buy the
newspapers, magazines or journals they read?
In Ghana, the Daily
Graphic has already taken steps to stay relevant to the different classes of
people. Apart from the graphic online, they have the “Graphic LIVE” app which
enables anyone with a smartphone to scan the Daily Graphic onto their mobile
device. Though some print media houses are still holding on to tradition, the
truth is digital technology is the future and print media will eventually fossilize.
You can either re-invent with technology or be completely annihilated.
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