ON-LINE JOURNALISM RAPIDLY BECOMING MORE POPULAR

A Special Feature by Leo E. Laurence, Editor, San Diego New Service

San Diego -- President-elect Barrack Obama changed presidential campaigning permanently by making maximum the use of on-line resources. He perfected what Gov. Howard Dean III started during his 2004 campaign for president, and successfully utilized for Obama in his unique 50-state program by the Democratic National Committee.

The Internet is also dramatically changing journalism, which has traditionally been dominated by the print media. The change has not been always easy, particularly for journalists like myself who have printer's ink in our veins.

On-line journalism, however, is rapidly dominating the news media.


As circulation for the print version of the San Diego Union Tribune continues to decline, the on-line version of Copley's U-T, SignOnSanDiego.com, is thriving. It gets millions of hits every month, according to sources at the newspaper.


SignOnSanDiego's primary competition, the "new" VoiceofSanDiego.com, also a privately-owned company, is also thriving and using highly experienced journalists.


Until recently, San Diego News Service has focused primarily on print journalism, covering the area for both local and national newspapers and magazines.

Almost by accident, we ventured into on-line journalism and launched the HillcrestBlog on Google (BlogbytheLion.blogspot.com).


We would have been happy to get a hundred readers to our new, on-line news service.


But, we were wonderfully surprised that it is being read by thousands, some as far away as Paris (Thanks, Dimitri). Many of our on-line readers are giving us feedback and providing valuable news tips about people and events in the area.


Many blogs are basically opinion pieces of the blogger. We are different! We decided to make our HillcrestBlog a source of hard news and reviews of the arts/theatre/movies. Opinion, news analysis, features (like this one) and commentary will always be clearly labeled at the top of the story.


One of the exciting aspects of on-line journalism is its immediacy.


About one-third of my career was in radio news, back when it was the only serious, alternative source of hard news to newspapers (before TV news matured). It was exciting because I could have my stories as State House Reporter in Indianapolis on-the-air within hours of a news-making event.


Now, on-line journalism is providing that same, exciting immediacy.


For example, on Saturday (11/8) when over 10,000 marched in a massive demonstration for "equal rights" in response to the passage of Prop-8 that will abolish gay marriages (but, only after the vote is certified by the secretary of state), San Diego News Service was able to have that story and a photo of the huge march on-line even before the event had concluded.


The thousands of you who are reading our HillcrestBlog on Google are encouraged to continue to call or send e-mails with your comments and news tips.


A news organization is only as good as its sources of news.
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Copyright 2008 by San Diego News Service, (619) 757-4909 leopowerhere@msn.com