Francis Rizzo
Journalism and Mass Media Studies Department -- School of Communication
Journalism 150 -- Independent Study
Advisor: Steven Knowlton
The discipline of print journalism has taken many hits lately. The level of readership of newspapers has been steadily decreasing in recent years. Paper costs have been steadily increasing. There seemed to be a big enough threat to the welfare on the dailies that a multi-million dollar advertising effort for newspaper awareness appears on that one-time nemesis television, across the country, utilizing celebrities to extol the virtues of the printed page.

And as print journalism weathers the storm from the problems of passing time and cultural shifts, a new enemy looms at the horizon. A strong foe, this new warrior in the journalism arena poses a hefty challenge for the venerable ink-stained armor of newspapers. This opponent is quicker, has a better reach, and worst of all, costs less. This dreadful creature? The Internet. And with each day, it flexes its muscles a little more, taunting the print world. At last count more than 3,600 news websites were available on the Internet. But at each turn, a new chink in the electronic armor of the World Wide Web shows itself, and more questions are raised against it. Will the Internet be as destructive to newspapers as television was supposed to be, or do we just have a different version of USA Today to look forward to?

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