Print vs. Online Journalism by Katie Meline

The article “Bailout Plan Rejected, Markets Plunge, Forcing New Scramble to Solve Crisis” from The Wall Street Journal and Lawmakers scramble for new bailout plan from MSNBC.com cover the same information but are very different because of the mediums they are posted through.

The Wall Street Journal is an elite newspaper and it shines through in this article with the use of sophisticated vocabulary and how much more information is crammed into the article as opposed to my MSNBC.com article. The article from WSJ is not only longer but it covers more topics as indicated from the title than the article online. The WSJ article goes into detail about how stocks reacted to the rejection of the bailout plan, what happened with the bailout plan for the first half of the article before transitioning into talking about what the government could potentially do now.

Meanwhile, the MSNBC.com article mostly focuses on what our government is currently doing to create new ideas to fix the financial crisis with a brief synopsis of what happened yesterday. The WSJ goes more into depth for the big picture while MSNBC.com focuses on a small piece of the big picture with links to other articles for the rest of the story, a benefit of online journalism.

The WSJ actually has a box at the end of the article indicating a more interactive element than it would be otherwise. Reader interaction is much more frequent online by allowing readers to post their comments or thoughts similar to letters in print. Having a connection to online allows them to continue to compete against the solely online projects.

Print journalism is tangible which depending on which generation one is from is better than the other. However, print cannot be updated as the day goes on, which is what online journalism can do but sometimes links do not work and are harder to find. Both present similar information it is just a matter of how it is posted, what demographic they are going for, length of articles and so on.

Articles:
The Wall Street Journal: Bailout Plan Rejected, Markets Plunge, Forcing New Scramble to Solve Crisis
MSNBC.com: Lawmakers scramble for alternate bailout planTUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2008
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John McCain and the Media
Credit
McCain in Perrysburg, Ohio with the press.

Since receiving the Republican Party’s nomination for President Senator John McCain’s (R-AZ) relationship with the press has changed. McCain was a media favorite because of unfettered access and informality during the campaign trail. Now is a different story.

“His relationship with the press has completely transformed,” said Quinnipiac University History professor Cheryl Szetela. “From one of complete openness to one of distrust of accusation. It is representative of the transformation of McCain the candidate from who he was as a candidate in 2000 to whom he is now and because he has reached a new threshold of success, there is simply a need to insulate himself from the press.”

The relationship McCain had with the press during the primary resulted in McCain having more coverage. Now, with less access the press has shifted their attention to issues and McCain’s history instead of personality. With less access the media, according to John McCain has manufactured a scandal, about him having an affair with one of his aides; McCain has begun to attack both The New York Times and MSNBC.

“A more aggressive posture leads to more stories that are negative in subject and tone,” said Quinnipiac University Journalism professor Rich Hanley. “The more these stories are published, posted and aired, the more damage it causes to the candidate in the aggregate relative to voters who haven't made up their minds. It is likely that media coverage won’t influence [the election].”

During primary season McCain promised weekly press conferences to the media but has broken that promise many times since receiving the nomination.

“Voters could not care less about how a candidate treats the media,” said Hanley. “In fact, a typical tactic of Republicans that has been in play for 40 years is to inoculate their candidates against negative coverage by asserting that the media have a liberal bias and is out to get the candidate.”

Szetela says that this tactic allows McCain to paint his running mate Sarah Palin to be the victim. Due to this Palin does not have a relationship with the press and the McCain campaign is trying to turn this into a positive element. This could help with some voters who think the media is trying to belittle her.
Meanwhile, Barack Obama’s (D-IL) relationship with the press has been more traditional than McCain’s. He is not someone who courts the press as McCain has in the past.

“The relationship between the media and Obama is more grounded in political professionalism than personality,” said Hanley.

Despite this, McCain’s campaign manager has accused the New York Times of being an agent for Barack Obama rather than a news organization.

“The best relationship [between the media and Presidential candidates] is one where the media maintains an arms-length distance,” said Hanley. “[The Media should] cover the office regardless of the personality of the person who occupies it.”