We once relied solely on newspapers, television and neighbourhood gossip to find out about the latest trending news. Since the advent of the internet, newspapers have become a dying trend and are no longer the primary source for news related information. More and more people are relying on the internet to stay informed, turning to the sites they already frequently visit on a regular basis. Amazingly, a multitude of platforms have emerged, offering trending news in a myriad of formats.
Most of these sites present reports in a much different format than traditional sites, which historically has been very objective and straight to the point. News sites are now offering more opinion-oriented articles. Often they present the information in an informative yet entertaining way in hopes of competing against all the much less formal platforms offering fun and offbeat reporting. Websites including Facebook and Twitter are changing the way we read news. They make it easier to integrate staying informed into our daily activities.
Many of us check the news while surfing Facebook or Twitter, and turn to friend’s profiles and stats to learn about the latest news or gossip. Traditionally our expectations have been very high in regards to the accuracy of the news related source. Today we’ve become more desensitized to receiving news from less reputable sources, accepting claims without validation that the information is in fact truthful and accurate. Our friends latest Twitter status update is now an acceptable trending news source, and people are becoming far more vocal about their opinions.
In the past if we had a complaint or opinion about something we read in the newspaper we would have filed a complaint and hoped that it would be read or published. Today, however, it only takes the click of a button to create a viral statement about what we’ve read or heard. We also have far more sources to validate what we have read in the newspaper or heard on television. We can see it not only from the “objective” point of view of traditional news sources but also from an opinion standpoint. Sources including Twitter, Facebook and other social platforms make it easier for us to see what other people are saying and and provide us with varying viewpoints. Social networking sites structure our communication effectively to make our thoughts more streamlined. Even email seems outdated when we interact with our friends and share news over these innovative channels.
