thumb|[[Electronic news-gathering trucks and photojournalists gathered outside the Prudential Financial headquarters in Newark, United States in August 2004 following the announcement of evidence of a terrorist threat to it and to buildings in New York City.]]

The news media or news industry are forms of mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public. These sources include news agencies, newspapers, news magazines, news channels, etc.

History

Some of the first news circulations occurred in Renaissance Europe. These handwritten newsletters, circulated among merchants, contained news about wars, economic conditions, and social customs. Newsletters were very scarce and no two were the same as they were all handwritten, until the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in 1440. With movable type and ink, newspapers were now able to be mass produced for cheap. The first printed news appeared by the late 1400s in German pamphlets, which contained content that was often highly sensationalized. The first newspaper written in English was The Weekly News, published in London in 1621. Several papers followed in the 1640s and 1650s. In 1690, the first American newspaper was published by Richard Pierce and Benjamin Harris in Boston. However, it did not have permission from the government to be published and was immediately suppressed.

In the United States

In 1729, Benjamin Franklin began writing a new form of newspaper that was more satirical and involved in civic affairs than previously seen. In 1735, John Peter Zenger was accused of seditious libel by the governor of New York, William Cosby. Zenger was found not guilty, largely in part due to his attorney Andrew Hamilton. Hamilton later wrote a paper in which he argued that newspapers should be free to criticize the government as long as it was true. Later, with the ratification of the Bill of Rights in 1791, freedom of the press would be guaranteed by the First Amendment.

Newsreels

A newsreel was a documentary film common in the first half of the 20th century, that regularly released in a public presentation place containing filmed news stories.

Created by Pathé Frères of France in 1908, this form of film was a staple of the typical North American, British, and Commonwealth countries (especially Canada, Australia and New Zealand). Newsreels were popular throughout European cinema programming schedules from the silent era until the 1960s when television news broadcasting completely supplanted their role. Due to television news, the popularity of newsreels began to decline, and they were eventually phased out altogether.

Online journalism

thumb|left|alt=Empty newspaper vending boxes on the street, left to right, the Los Angeles Times (cut off), Epoch Times, a San Diego paper (Gone to the Web, sddt.com), a white unnamed box, and the San Diego Business Journal (cut off)|Newspaper "gone to the Web" in California

Online journalism, otherwise known as digital journalism, is the reporting of news produced or distributed via the Internet. The Internet has allowed the formal and informal publication of news stories. Online journalism can be published by professional writers and journalists through mainstream media websites and outlets. Or, news can be published by citizens, through blogs, vlogs, and social media. Apropos of this was Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s 11,000-word Rolling Stone article apropos of the 2004 United States presidential election, published June 1, 2006. By June 8, there had been no mainstream coverage of the documented allegations by President John F. Kennedy's nephew. On June 9, this sub-story was covered by a Seattle Post-Intelligencer article.

Media coverage during the 2008 Mumbai attacks highlighted the use of new media and Internet social networking tools, including Twitter and Flickr, in spreading information about the attacks, observing that Internet coverage was often ahead of more traditional media sources. In response, traditional media outlets included such coverage in their reports. However, several outlets were criticized as they did not check for the reliability and verifiability of the information. Some public opinion research companies have found that a majority or plurality of people in various countries distrust the news media.

Social media

People have a lot of options when it comes to choosing their consumption of news, and many are increasingly turning to social media. Over half of U.S. adults, 54%, get some of their news from social media, according to a Pew Research Center survey from September 2024. The two most popular sources are Facebook and YouTube, as 33% and 32% of users learn information from these sources, with Instagram and TikTok following close at 20% and 17%. The director of news and information research at Pew Research Center, Katerina Eva Matsa, says people aren't just looking for facts when they seek out news, but also a sense of community. Social media algorithms allow for users to see catered news and information to suit their likings and beliefs.

These algorithms have introduced users to social media news influencers that may resonate with them. "News influencers" have gained huge popularity in recent months, as almost 4 in 10 U.S. adults under 30, or 37%, regularly turn to them, according to another Pew Research Center study from November 2024. News influencers are defined as "individuals who have a large following on social media and often post about news or political or social issues". With the rise of new media through social media (Facebook, YouTube, etc) there has been an increase in fake news due to the ability of anyone able to share and rapidly spread information. It can be tough to decipher who to trust and who not to.

Media integrity

Media integrity refers to the ability of a news media outlet to serve the public interest and democratic process, making it resilient to institutional corruption within the media system, economy of influence, conflicting dependence and political clientelism. Media integrity encompasses the following qualities of a media outlet:

  • independence from private or political interests
  • transparency about own financial interests
  • commitment to journalism ethics and standards
  • responsiveness to citizens

The concept was devised particularly for the media systems in the region of South East Europe, within the project South East European Media Observatory, gathering organizations which are part of the South East European Network for Professionalization of Media (SEENPM).

See also

  • Court of public opinion
  • Hostile media effect
  • Media literacy
  • Media regulation
  • News presenter
  • Yellow press

References

  • Chart – Real and Fake News (2016)/Vanessa Otero (basis) (Mark Frauenfelder)
  • Chart – Real and Fake News (2014) (2016 )/Pew Research Center