Although the controversy between traditional media and new media usage exist, society relies on both types of medias to stay informed.
According to Zenith Optimedia, from 2010 to 2014, the amount of time people spent using the internet nearly doubled from 59.6 to 109.5 minutes a day, while the usage of traditional media declined from 402.2 to 375.8 minutes.
Traditional media is still effective and preferred.
Yanahysa Reynoso, sophomore medical student in the Dominican Republic, admits to preferring traditional media, specifically newspaper, to stay informed. Reynoso also discussed some of the perks and downfalls of traditional media usage.
“The evolution of the media has had its positive impact as well as its negative impact. When only the printed newspaper was used, people had the habit of sitting down to read the newspaper and develop reading aloud and take their time reading. In current media, sometimes you just see a video where you inform the news but you have no habit of reading it,” Reynoso said in Spanish.
“We must also bear in mind that in the new media, the published news is recorded so that the reader can search it every time he wants to read it; however in the old media, the newspaper can be damaged or simply lost,” Reynoso said.
Easy access to stories and the ability to share stories through social media platforms has sided with new media usage.
“I prefer new media because it makes it more practical when i want to find out more about something that i could just go right to the internet and find it. I also find it easier to share with others through social media to expand a story and share it with others,” Maria Merino, sophomore education major at Cabrini University, said.
Traditional media and new media now are being combined in classrooms.
“I often use Channel One in the classroom, which recaps news stories and provides a great platform for classroom discussions. Also, I bring newspaper articles into my lesson to help teach concepts. For example, my students are working on argumentative essays. Today, I am using an article from the New York Times as a model text,” Danielle Holmes, sixth grade writing teacher, said.
Traditional media has declined but is still effective.
New media has improved the world but is not available to everyone. Nonetheless, both achieve the common purpose: to inform.
As long as there is still a gap in internet access, traditional media will be needed.
“The media have evolved in large numbers, but we must bear in mind that not all places have access to the internet, so their evolution is useless,” Reynoso said.
