Online  journalism is also known as digital journalism is a contemporary form of journalism where editorial content is distributed via d internet as opposed 2 publishing via print or broadcast. What constitutes' digital Journalism is debated by scholars.However, the pry product of journalism, which is news and features on current affairs, is presented solely or in combination as text, audio, video, and some interactive forms and dissemination through digital media platforms.

Few barriers to entity, lowered distribution costs and diverse computer networking technologies have led to the widespread practice of digital journalism. It has democratized the flow of information. that was previously controlled by traditional media including newspapers, magazine, radio and TV.

The media law is an area of the law which covers media communications. of all sorts and sizes. Specialists in this field may work for individual companies, handling legal issues which come up in the course of doing business. They also work for organization which provide advocacy to people who run a foul of the law, or have private practices with  consulting services other forms of legal assistance available to clients.

There are 3 general areas of interest within media law. The first is print media, including newspapers, magazines., print advertising etc. The second is telecommunications, including radio, TV broadcasting. 

Finally, digital communications, and the  internet are broad field within media law and as the internet evolves, this frontier is constantly changing.

Media lawyers handle topics such as defamation, slander and the  right to privacy. They discuss whether or not activities are legal, what modifications might need to  be made 2 make something legal, and how to defend people engaging in controversial activities. Media lawyers can specialize in things like assisting citizen journalists, protecting journalistic sources, defending copyrights and intellectual property and determining where the boundaries of fair use lie.

Many nations have a no. of laws whch pertain 2 media, and these laws are often in flux as nations attempt to deal wit changing technology and  norms.

THE MORNING AFTER***

Basic economic principles taught us that resources are limited in supply and human wants are insatiable. How do we reconcile these two warring ends? How can a man get all that he ever wanted and won't be looking for more? When will resources be just enough to meet all our wants? The answer is NEVER!

Since resources will never be enough and human wants will never be satisfied, we must learn some basic human principles to happy life. The first and most important part to happiness is contentment. You must accept that no man can have it all in life and no one is without anything. Happiness resides in contentment not in having it all.

Anyone who love to spend than to make money will be poor for life. If all you know is buying buying and buying, you will continue the rat race till the end of life. Managing resources start with prudent spending. Be frugal and wise. Do not forget your wants can never be fully satisfied because as one want is met others arise. A man who can master and control his appetite will have more than enough.

Keep money, power resides with the man who have means. There is no salary too small to keep part of it in savings. Make it an habit to keep money in your pocket, in your bank account and in investment. The rich are called rich because they have money, but never forget they actually start by keeping money.

We will continue tomorrow. Keep a date.

The Morning After comes your way daily by 9am GMT+1. Don't miss it.

On Silverbird there are many channels of information such as: trending news, live-stream,  advertising, career, blog, sport.

LTV: online attetion, such as: podcast, downloads,  contact request,  Past Perm Secs Principal Officers

Events, Projects, News, Downloadable, Special Announcements

Also been a stategovement station they are avenue for political discusion couple with:

Executive

Governors Office

Deputy Governors Office

Ministries

Transportation

Waterfront Infrastructure Development

Parastatals

Education Distrct III

Education District IV

Lagos State Film and Video Censors Board

PM NEWS: their are coloums for sport, politics, lifestlye, entertainment, editorial, opinion, media birthday, coloums for advertisement, also as the days paper headlines, the company contacts as well as online links address. 

CNN SITE: there are sub menu for international, arabic mexico and african links, news religion, sport, video, featuring opinion and more which encompasses  news are been updated per seconds likewise the a space for old new then coloums to search for new  or recent news.

1. Explain media convergence 2. Explain how the convergence affected the media.

Assignment:

1.     Explain media convergence

2.     Explain how the convergence affected the media.

 

Media Convergence

Introduction

For communication scholars, convergence is a fairly elastic term that has come to mean different things depending on time, application, and context. There are a number of driving forces that focus public attention on the issue, including the digitalization of media and information technology, worldwide deregulation trends, changes in technology (most notably the Internet), merger and acquisition activities, and the search for new market. While the term convergence may be elastic, it shoulders an important responsibility in helping to explain the ramifications of technologies and business enterprises that are linked together. Media convergence is the merging (or joining together) of previously distinct media to create entirely new forms of communication expression. Convergence is at the heart of today’s digital media revolution and includes such technologies and software applications as the Internet and electronic commerce, smartphone technology, digital-film animation, DVD (digital video disc) music and high-definition television (HDTV), and videogame systems to name only a few. Over time, convergence has become a fairly elastic term that has come to mean different things depending on time, application, and context. For communication scholars, there are a number of driving forces that focus public attention on the issue, including the digitalization of media and information technology, media merger and acquisition activities, changes in technology (most notably the Internet), the repurposing of old media into new media formats, and the growing importance of social networking and virtual communities. Numerous books, chapters, and articles have been written on the topic of media convergence. They vary in size and quality from the scholarly to the popular press. As Mike Wirth points out, “One of the challenges of studying media convergence is that the concept is so broad that it has multiple meanings.” (See Wirth 2006, p. 445, cited under Technology and Economic Performance). More so, because the term is implied in a number of related terms and ideas, including: digital media, cross-media ownership, transnational media, and broadband communication. Central to any discussion on media convergence is the term digital media itself, because it provides the context and example through which media convergence occurs. In general, media convergence falls into four general categories that will be covered in this bibliography: Introductory Works, Business Enterprise Convergence, Technology and Economic Performance, and Culture and Social Commentary.

Definition of Media Convergence

Convergence is the process where several media channels come together to exists and operate in synergy or rather in harmony. A convergence is basically seen in every person's cell phone, glance down at your palm and there sits a device that can click a photograph, edit and modify the same and also send it like a mail. Some people like to define convergence simply by stating it to be a merger of mass media and communication outlets. In some cases multi-utility of the same gadget or some media was also attributed to be a convergence. There are countless examples that can be found and with the advancement of time and technology manufacturers of technology are engaged in a race to manufacture devices that have a maximum number of media converged within them.

Three media channels are currently the focal point of the media convergence journey. First, the print media that has started laying a certain emphasis on the Internet-based outlets, the slowly depleting line in between the television and the computer and the slowly reducing line in between the computers and the cell phones. Some decades from henceforth, we might be walking with gadgets in our hands that are fast and intelligent than the super computers, have better connectivity than the cell phones and can be used as televisions and newspapers. Well, fact is technology is acting as a super catalyst in the convergence race.

Media Convergence and Society

There are a considerable number of effects of convergence on society. Media convergence is something that impacts us all down to our every day life and such has become the way of life that society adapts and changes accordingly. Fact is, convergence of media indeed effects us in everyday life. First we started only with written letter, then we proceeded to the ones that were typed on a typewriter, followed by the Fax and email, to the point where we now send a video or voice mail. Now, the pinnacle of convergence would be where an illuminated graphical figure would pop out of our gadgets to deliver a mail, orally, or graphically.

It goes without saying that media convergence is a speedy process affecting our careers too. It is getting more and more competitive out there as one needs to start learning the converged technology as soon as it appears. Not only this but entire offices and distances in two places have shrunk. Papers are slowly disappearing from officers and certain slow working tools such as pens and typewriters are also disappearing. An apt example is that of the people who are in media jobs, as convergence demands versatility in jobs of the media personnel.
Read more at Buzzle: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/what-is-media-convergence.html

It is important here to consider the fact that much difficulty and disagreement had arisen in defining the notion of media convergence. Most theorists agree that in general terms convergence means ‘coming together of two or more things’, however a variety of different arguments have been put forward in an attempt to define what exactly is coming together (Grant and Wilkinson, 2009). On the one hand, convergence can be viewed as ‘coming together of different equipment and tools for producing and distributing news’ (ibid.). Jenkins (2006:3), on the other hand, defines convergence as ‘flow of content across multiple media platforms’, suggesting that media audiences nowadays play a crucial role in creating and distributing content, and convergence therefore has to be examined in terms of social, as well as technological changes within the society. According to Jenkins, media convergence is an ongoing process that should not be viewed as a displacement of the old media, but rather as interaction between different media forms and platforms (Jenkins, 2006). Supporting this argument, Deuze cited in Erdal (2011) suggests that media convergence should be viewed as ‘cooperation and collaboration’ between previously unconnected media forms and platforms.  Burnett and Marshall cited in Grant and Wilkinson (2008:5) explain convergence as ‘blending of the media, telecommunications and computer industries’ or, in other words, as the process of blurring the boundaries between different media platforms and uniting them into one digital form.

One question that needs to be asked, however, is whether or not these recent developments are beneficial for the society and the industry itself. In other words, whether or not media convergence presents more opportunities than challenges to both media producers and consumers. One of the areas of particular concern when examining positive and negative consequences of media convergence is media ownership (Jenkins, 2006). Nowadays the power to control media industry is concentrated in the hands of private owners and relatively small number of big media corporations. For example, companies, such as Warner Bros., which used to focus on the film industry, nowadays have control over various aspects of entertainment industry in general, such as computer games, books, magazines, web sites and toys, which is all part of the process of media convergence (Jenkins, 2006). Consequences of this trend can be viewed as both positive and negative. On the one hand, it may cause the decline in the diversity of material offered and result in a tendency that voices of those lacking economic power will not be taken into account (Branston et al., 2008:179). On the other hand, it is argued that market driven media owned and controlled by big media corporations ‘can actually improve the value of the service, the flexibility of topics and the competence of the contributers’ as well as enable technological developments, change the elitism of media professionals and create new general awareness (Grant, 2009). Another aspect of media convergence that can be seen as its major drawback is what Jenkins (2006:23) calls the ‘participation gap’. This concept refers to the fact that while media convergence in general has encouraged audiences to participate in the process of content creation, it requires extended access to modern technologies, familiarity with the new forms of media, as well as developing certain skills (ibid.). As a result, certain segments of the audience arguably remain neglected and unable to fully participate in the new media culture.

                                                        

Drawing on the definitions of media convergence outlined above, it can be argued that one of the ways of understanding media convergence is in terms of interaction between old and new forms of media. This concept can be explained more clearly using the example of television industry and its development over the years. The idea of transition from analogue media to digital media stands at the core of media convergence debate. The term ‘analogue’ is used to describe something ‘that resembles something else’ (Dewdney and Ride, 2006:227), therefore signals transmitted through television can be seen as being analogous to the light and sound of the actual scene (ibid.). In the case of analogue media, each form was separate and independent from the others due to the need to use different ‘materials, properties and apparatuses’ (ibid.). With the introduction of digital code however the situation changed rapidly and opened new possibilities for media creation and convergence, for example, new forms of interaction between producers and consumers

A Brief History of Media Convergence

History is littered with examples of convergence for convenience. It’s what we do, right? We take two or more things, duct tape ‘em together, and (theoretically) make a better, more versatile thing as a result. I don’t think it’s too crazy to say that our tolerance for single-function tools is bookended by all the combo-inventions in our past, from the spork to the clock radio – and that tolerance is shrinking as the pace of technological progress has quickened.

Nowhere is this more evident than with our media and methods of communication, which are converging in geometrically accelerating cycles. A quick review of history shows us a pattern of each advance serving as an integral steppingstone to the birth of the next generation of communication tools. Allow me to elaborate:

First Cycle

• The printed newspaper, invented 1436
• The ‘Silent Pictures,’ invented 1888
• Radio, invented 1896

» Coexisted for 29 years before converging into the Television, invented 1925

Second Cycle

• Telephone, invented 1876
• Radio, invented 1896
• Silicon Chip, invented 1958

» Coexisted for 15 years before converging into the Cellphone, invented 1973

Third Cycle

• Cellphone, invented 1973
• Digital Camera, invented 1981
• PDA, invented 1983
• The Internet, invented 1983

» Coexisted for 10 years before converging into the Smartphone, invented 1993

Can you see where this is going yet? Well, hold on to your propeller hats, this is where it gets interesting.

It was in the late ’90s that the Internet really began to serve as a major communications vehicle, enabling people to share ideas and collaborate in ways that only spurred on these cycles of innovation and convergence:

Fourth Cycle

• IM, invented mid-1960s
• Email, invented 1965
• Search engines, invented 1991
• Blogs, invented 1994
• Web-based Forums, invented 1996
• RSS, invented 2002

» Coexisted for 4 years before converging into Twitter, invented 2006

Which brings us to today. Within a month or so, Google is poised to release what many are calling the next iteration of communications technology, named Google Wave. Concise definitions of what it actually is are hard to come by, which makes sense, because I think it’s basically the culmination of 573 years of media convergence (there, was that concise enough for you?):

Fifth Cycle

• IM, invented mid-1960s
• Web-based Email, invented 1995
• Wikis, invented 1995
• Facebook, invented 2004
• Twitter, invented 2006

2. Explain how the convergence affected the media

EFFECT OF CONVERGENCE ON THE MEDIA

A comprehensive social media strategy enables customers, as well as employees, to interact with each other using Web 2.0 tools, integrated with internal and external portals. Several of the tools available in the market have matured exponentially in terms of their architecture, security and "enterprise friendliness," making them easy to integrate with existing enterprise applications.

With the introduction of advanced smartphones, e-readers and tablets, it's hardly surprising that consumption of online content has grown exponentially. This has caused turmoil within the media industry. Traditional advertising revenues are declining as new marketing options are emerging. Print media and newspaper subscriber bases and readership are eroding, while the competition for online viewership is increasing. The need for adoption of social media and delivery to multiple mobile devices is increasingly becoming essential for retaining and attracting new customers.

In this rapidly changing environment, media organizations are being forced to reevaluate their strategies for media convergence. Companies are taking a holistic approach to branding and delivering content to various platforms such as televisions, Internet, mobile devices, social media sites, print and other channels.

Managing and reusing content has become essential for making the user experience consistent and seamless. For example, content that is being displayed on the television channels need to be simultaneously transmitted on websites. Conversely, user-generated content on social media sites should be displayed on television channels. This mishmash of different types of content and different types of delivery channels has caused many interdependencies and integration challenges for media organizations.

For successful engagement with the audience, it is imperative that different components of business applications are integrated across media channels to have a complete convergence experience. At the same time, organizations need to take into consideration the impact of handling multiple content formats into their information architecture. While business needs are changing quite rapidly, it is imperative that the supporting information architecture is designed with flexibility and some degree of future proof-ability to minimize total cost of ownership of such convergence applications.

Multichannel Publishing

Since media organizations need to maintain multiple channels, the content that gets published across these channels should be consistent and be managed together. The Enterprise Content Management system (including video and rich media management) needs to be robust and scalable to effectively support the publication of content across multiple channels -- including on the mobile Web, on different mobile applications such as iPhone apps, Android apps, etc., and on print channels, as well as integrate with third-party video feed and video distribution services.

This ensures that the content is managed in a single repository, while getting published across multiple channels. Organizations are strongly advised to consider several technical solutions available in the market that enables them to abstract the technical challenges (e.g. browser properties, rendering, etc.) of publishing content to diverse devices.

Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization plays a major role in driving traffic to the website. The site should be optimized not only for its own content, but also for the content published on various other channels.

Tools that can monitor the websites to track various SEO aspects, such as broken links, keywords, metadata information, etc., can play an important role in improving the site results.

As mobile Web portals gain more prominence, SEO for mobile portals will gain importance.

Social Media

Integration of social media tools within media portals can not only improve stickiness to the site, but also help increase readership.

A comprehensive social media strategy enables customers, as well as employees, to interact with each other using Web 2.0 tools, integrated with internal and external portals.

Several of the tools available in the market have matured exponentially in terms of their architecture, security and "enterprise friendliness," making it easy to integrate with existing enterprise applications.

Globalization and Localization

Web portals should enable users to view local content that is being shared across various channels. For example, a French ad/video on television needs to be appropriately displayed on the "France" country website -- not an English version.

Making sure that the search engines provide support for multiple languages is also key. At times, organizations may want to enable search of documents/Web pages in other languages, too. Make sure that translation architecture, defined for the global website, supports that.

This in-depth localization of portals through integration with relevant country-specific media servers ensures that content is customized to local users, thereby improving viewership.

As suggested earlier, it is extremely important to take into consideration the need to support multiple global languages in the information architecture so that future changes will not necessitate massive rewrites, which usually means higher costs.

Advanced Analytics

Media convergence requires tracking advanced analytics. Tracking campaigns that are spread across multiple channels is an essential part of it.

For example, tracking the site visits or site activity based on video displayed on television and correspondingly broadcasting relevant information on TV or on social media are use cases that are possible with the right media convergence solution implementation.

As media organizations look for ways to differentiate themselves, solutions like these help them to provide innovative products and solutions to their customers.

Video and Rich Media Management

An integrated video and rich media management is essential for media convergence. Integration with third-party video servers, as well as live video feed integration with Web portals, can provide multiple venues for customers to view the content.

Similarly, ad server integration with multiple delivery channels may be required as relevant advertisements are displayed to different users -- based on their persona (on Web and mobile) and based on their location (on television).

The site should be flexible to accommodate frequent modifications/updates to suit the advertisers

Greater Effectiveness, More Revenue

As these various elements come together, convergence of media across various channels will become very effective and seamless. By ensuring advertisements are consistent, though in varied forms, organizations can increase their effectiveness, leading to increased ad revenue.

Convergence also helps better understand user base and capture trends that are currently unavailable or not measurable. This can provide valuable insights into user behavior and convert into new services, solutions and ideas.

Maintaining a single repository of content also helps substantially reduce operational costs, while improving viewership.

Media organizations that adopt convergence as part of their future road map stand a better chance of success than the ones that do not.