Why I still write for a newspaper
A student talks about the rise of digital journalism
Alyssa Bunde
Staff Writer
Print newspapers are fading away, but this does not mean the journalists that write for them are also leaving. Journalists have found their new home online. Journalism isn’t dying, it’s evolving.
Growing up I created my own newspaper with its very own comic section for my house.
I made a newspaper for my fourth-grade class and wrote for my high school paper. Shockingly enough, I now write for my college’s paper.
However, many people ask why I still write for a print paper if journalism is moving towards the internet? Why even put my energy towards something that is supposedly dying?
My motivation is simple, I still genuinely enjoy and believe in newspapers.
Being a mass media student, I love the digital world and all that it encompasses but there is something so satisfying about seeing your name in print.
In addition, there is still respect for someone that has written for a newspaper. Newspapers still hold weight in the world. They are one of the oldest types of media and the fact that they are still around is evidence of their resilience.
In order for anything to survive it must evolve and adapt. This is exactly what print media is experiencing.
However, it cannot evolve or adapt if everyone loses hope and abandons ship. Print media needs believers and new aged dreamers to help it grow in this digital world.
I write for a newspaper because I know that while the physical copies may be slowly diminishing, the journalistic aspect will never die. The world will always need news and sources of information.
The process of interviewing and researching for stories doesn’t go away just because their findings are no longer able to be inked on a physical page. Each print newspaper has to find its place in this digital jungle. Whether that be adding a podcast or switching to digital stories only. There will be losses and I know it’s not a simple transition but it’s a necessary one.
We cannot be scared of change; we must embrace this new age with open arms and know that a journalist’s voice can and never will be silenced. I write for a newspaper because it’s not dead, it’s shifting.