Tuesday, 17 February 2009
Week 5, Meikle D, Open News
When i was doing the reading, in the back of mind my i was always thinking if 'anyone' is allowed to post news onto the Web then is it really any good? Cynically i was thinking how can you believe what is written in terms of the news on the Web when you are unsure to who has posted it. I know you could say the same for the TV however for some reason i do believe what i am told, i always have. I suppose i just do, you can see who is presenting it and trust the 'well spoken person in suit with the serious tone'. Furthermore the TV news is still running showing how people do trust it (for whatever reason) and Open News according to Meikles research has actually been removed from the front ages of some websites. Meikle suggested that one of the main reasons for this was that 'well researched or significant stories would be replaced quickly on the front page'. So if the other stories weren't thought of as well researched or significant then are they really of any quality or standing?
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oops I just commented on the post before, but my questions probably fit better with this post, sorry x
ReplyDeleteBut i just thought of another point...Do you think Turkle's idea of freedom on the net, and the net being an 'open architecture' is criticised in Meikle's writing? If there is still a moderator choosing what is put on the front page, does it take away from these ideas?
ReplyDeleteI haven’t commented back on the questions you asked for the other blog because like you said i think they suit this post better. In some sense i have already answered that i think TV is a more reliable source of information for the news as apposed to the internet. Its one of those ideologies that 'a person in a suit holds authority' and i think it is this and the whole presentation of the news which makes it more reliable then online. Furthermore i always think it must be true if they are airing it on TV news?.. Just because i have been brought up to not think any different. Is this the same for everyone do you think? Or is it just personal to me?
ReplyDeleteI think that’s an interesting point about Turkle's idea, especially the theory of freedom on the Net. Is it really open if it is moderated? However i think the moderation is needed for the News sites, to make sure no abusive stories are being processed which might greatly offend people and that the most important ones are seen first. Do you think there is a 'most important' story though?
The ideology about trusting a suit and believing television news because that's what i've been brought up with, is true for me too. Even though we are brought up in the internet era, our trust still belongs with the mediums that have history and what our parents have used. Maybe in the future, the trust will go onto the internt and the television news will seem old fashioned. Because these news sites like Indymedia are meant to be appealing to a large audience, it's hard to say which story will be most important. Does the person deciding really understand what people all over the country and world want to read? or is it just their biased perspective?
ReplyDeleteI hadn't thought of that, if we have been brought up on trusting the TV news then others can now possibly be brought up on trusting online news. However, only if the online news gets a good reputation and reliability first. Could it fade out before this? In my opinion I think most of the news stories online are probably biased to something that person is interested in or are. It is hard to find the enthusiasm to write about something which isn’t related to your life or you are interested a little bit. However on the news it is down to the reporter it is down to what’s most important, then again who decides what’s most important?
ReplyDeleteThe open news issue is a very complex one. As you say, there are all sorts of dynamics here - the comparison of the "new" media with the "traditional" media, the "suit" with, well, anybody - these are issues to do with that old question of cultural value. Suits = reliable - but we should all know from the credit-crash that men and women in suits aren't necessarily anything but wolves in sheep's clothing! The thing about open news is that it is an alternative to mainstream news, and has the potential to offer more than just the fixed values of the TV news systems - a whole range of different values, perhaps.
ReplyDeleteSo to the issue of someone taking overall charge of the Indymedia front page. Meikle's point was that the reason given for the FP being taken over was that well-researched stories were not having enough time ON the front page before they were replaced by something else. However, isn't this a case of Animal-Farm type behaviour? We start with rebellion against the controlling nature of traditional news and go for common-access instead, only, now, later down the line, someone is saying that they need to take charge (for the good of all, of course......)
The issue of removal of