When news technology first reached the American public, the reaction was not what many people would have considered “normal”. There were very few places on American soil, where you could get real news any time of day or night without traveling out of your home town. However, as news spread and became available to all across the country, the American news industry underwent a metamorphosis that has been continuing ever since. Today, the American news industry is stronger, more competitive, and more accessible than ever before.
One of the first steps to understand the modern news industry is to understand how it started. The evolution of the news industry began with the explosion of television and the invention of the cable TV set. These technologies transformed the way that news was shared throughout the United States. Suddenly, from the living rooms of farmers and dirt-poor workers to the living rooms of millionaires and aristocrats, all were able to receive the news from their computers and TVs at any hour of every day. In effect, the news became a commodity and news were no longer a specialty that a local business would offer to a small section of society. Instead, the news industry opened its doors to everyone, including everyone from the upper-class to the working class.
In addition to this impressive burst of technological innovation, another thing happened along the way: the creation of the new media, which are now commonly referred to as the Internet. Throughout the first decade of the new millennium, news was finally available to virtually everyone, and the Internet provided a means for even the most distant of Internet users to become deeply involved in world events. Today, millions upon millions of people log onto their computers to follow global events, world news, and even world sports. Without this explosion of new mediums, it would be nearly impossible to keep up with the pace of news, which has now become an integral part of our everyday lives.
Now, even the most technically-savvy among us is finding new ways to engage with the news. The explosion of social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace has made it possible for the general public to communicate with anyone across the globe. Companies such as Microsoft, Google, Yahoo, and AOL have combined their power to bring new technology to the masses by allowing their users to post news stories, video, and images right onto their websites.
As previously mentioned, the explosion of the news industry has created a whole new level of opportunity in the field of information technology and telecommunications. News technology has allowed companies to reach new heights of success by combining their own in-depth reporting with the power of the Internet. These companies can now provide comprehensive and timely news reports, breaking news, and weather and climate news to their consumers. They can also publish videos, audio clips, and online articles that can be easily distributed to their viewers.
As more news stories are produced by news tech companies, the competition for readers’ attention will only increase. This, in turn, has had a profound impact on the marketplace for news readers, and new markets for news publishers are being quickly created. Although there is much to learn and understand about the news industry, news technology and the news publishers who profit from its power and presence will continue to shape the future of the news industry.