As I wake up in the morning the first thing I do is check the latest
news on my mobile. At times, I open my desktop and go through the likes
of hindustantimes.com, expressindia.com and timesofindia.com
to keep myself abreast of what’s happening all around the globe. This
goes contrary to my younger days when grabbing a copy of the newspaper
was ingrained in my system.
But now, little do I feel like snatching a copy of The Times of India from my father whom I see engrossed in catching up on the latest. And when I come to the breakfast table and see my father discussing breaking news with my mother, I am least interested. “Dad I already know,” is my reaction.
Before my dear friend Kaushik Basu calls me to warn me that he is going to leave if I don’t arrive on time to go the gymnasium, I try to run through the papers (TOI and Anandabazar Patrika) to check if I have missed any major news. To my satisfaction, I haven’t thanks to Whatsapp, Twitter and other applications/sites that keep flooding me with news.
Yes, the digital media has arrived. Be it Donald’s Trump’s objectionable remarks or Narendra Modi’s megalomania, I am one step ahead of the rest. What others read today, I read it yesterday.
When wannabe journalists seek my advice on their next step in their careers, I put my money on the print media. But deep down going by my experiences, I contradict myself. When the internet gives you news every second, then what's the purpose of rushing towards the balcony to check if the morning papers have been dispatched to your place?
To my utter dismay, reading newspapers is just a habit that we can never bid farewell to. It’s like asking for a cup of tea early in the morning even if you feel like not having it. Earlier on, if it were TV, the mantle has been passed to the internet. And thanks to the advent of web journalism, access to news is much faster and easier.
But is it the end of the road for print media? I would hate to nod my head in the affirmative. You may call it a habit, but the age-old practice of looking into the papers, come what may can’t be discarded. Talk of our previous generation, they still prefer meticulous scanning the hard copy to logging in. And yes, there are times, when you return to a news item which you have overlooked on the web.
So, the newspapers aren’t a thing of the past yet. But digital media has left it behind in the race to the top. It’s a question of peaceful co-existence with each playing to its strength much like Amitabh Bachchan coming to terms with the fact that the Khans enjoy a bigger clout than he does.
But now, little do I feel like snatching a copy of The Times of India from my father whom I see engrossed in catching up on the latest. And when I come to the breakfast table and see my father discussing breaking news with my mother, I am least interested. “Dad I already know,” is my reaction.
Before my dear friend Kaushik Basu calls me to warn me that he is going to leave if I don’t arrive on time to go the gymnasium, I try to run through the papers (TOI and Anandabazar Patrika) to check if I have missed any major news. To my satisfaction, I haven’t thanks to Whatsapp, Twitter and other applications/sites that keep flooding me with news.
Yes, the digital media has arrived. Be it Donald’s Trump’s objectionable remarks or Narendra Modi’s megalomania, I am one step ahead of the rest. What others read today, I read it yesterday.
When wannabe journalists seek my advice on their next step in their careers, I put my money on the print media. But deep down going by my experiences, I contradict myself. When the internet gives you news every second, then what's the purpose of rushing towards the balcony to check if the morning papers have been dispatched to your place?
To my utter dismay, reading newspapers is just a habit that we can never bid farewell to. It’s like asking for a cup of tea early in the morning even if you feel like not having it. Earlier on, if it were TV, the mantle has been passed to the internet. And thanks to the advent of web journalism, access to news is much faster and easier.
But is it the end of the road for print media? I would hate to nod my head in the affirmative. You may call it a habit, but the age-old practice of looking into the papers, come what may can’t be discarded. Talk of our previous generation, they still prefer meticulous scanning the hard copy to logging in. And yes, there are times, when you return to a news item which you have overlooked on the web.
So, the newspapers aren’t a thing of the past yet. But digital media has left it behind in the race to the top. It’s a question of peaceful co-existence with each playing to its strength much like Amitabh Bachchan coming to terms with the fact that the Khans enjoy a bigger clout than he does.
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