Internet and The Media

At a recent conference I attended, one of the topics was the impact of the Internet on mainstream media. I was astounded.



I can't quote the statistics but the majority of people (under 60) get their news from the Internet. Blogs were the impetus for the downfall of Don Imus and Dan Rather. They exposed the Rush Limbaugh fiasco. The tradional media outlets are scrambling. Instead of reporting the news, they now need to provide perspective and commentary. We've already read the news. Now, tell us what it means.



As a journalist and writer, I find this fascinating.

I'm addicted to it all. The traditional news, the blogs, Court TV, Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, and more. When I was in Journalism school, we were required to read 5 newspapers each day. (There was no Internet; there was no cable.) We had a daily quiz about current events and you never knew which news source it would come from. Here's a sick part of my personality -- I loved it! Bring it on! That's probably the only reason I graduated from Journalism school -- I was really good at the current events quizzes.

I'm constantly trying to discuss current events with the oldies. I also make the Baby do little pop quizzes. When Reagan's funeral was on television, I dragged him out of bed and made him watch. With every pan of the camera, I was saying, "Who's that?" He needs to know the leaders of other countries, our cabinet members, past leaders, etc. He yawned a lot.

Do you think he knows who's buried in Grant's tomb?