Internet vs. Traditional Media

The evolution of technology has also changed the habits of the people. Internet is one of the tools that is used to gather information but not only. This doesn’t mean that people have given up on the traditional media, but internet is a new approach for people gathering and spreading information.

Media is used in various ways. There are people that stick more on the old-school media to get their information like Marian Osinga, 33. She prefers to listen to the news on the radio and television; only when she has missed something she will check the internet.

However, there is also the other extreme. Ineke Missoorten, 25 doesn’t even own a television and that’s by choice “because then I don’t have to watch stupid commercials
and meaningless programs”. The user is now in charge of the medium and the information they acquire. In fact iphone gives the chance to have all the newspaper headlines on a single application, as Missoorten said. The power that lays on the user’s hands is also what student Lidewey Nusse, 21 finds as the most important aspect. “It’s much better than television, on the internet you can choose, you really get to know new stuff.”

A new trend is the social networks. They are used for simple online interactions and going as far as business promotion. Nusse uses Facebook a lot, “just to know what my friends are doing”. However, Osinga, who runs a coffee shop, sees another potential for the social network “If you want to reach a bigger audience, it’s better to go on Facebook”. To promote her business she has set up a website informing customers about the products and what the shop can offer them. Her next target is to become active on Twitter, where customers can immediately know if there is fresh apple-pie waiting for them.

One of the interesting aspects of internet, is that users can also generate content. This is the well-known phenomenon of blogging. Nusse also mentioned that she used to have a blog when she was in high-school. However, her priorities changed and she finally gave up on this habit, but she admitted that she really liked to write.

The internet is a medium used in multiple ways, from information gathering, social interaction, business promotion and generating content. However, this doesn’t mean that traditional media will diminish, or that internet will prevail. After more than a decade that internet appeared, people are more familiar and they can distinguish the pros and cons of it, using it in a way that meets their personal needs.