Digital Revolution, known as the Third Industrial Revolution, is the change from analog, mechanical, and electronic technology to digital technology which began from the late 1950s to the late 1970s with the adoption and proliferation of digital computers and digital record keeping that continues to the present day.
Digital revolution has led to digital journalism also known as online journalism where editorial content is distributed via the internet as opposed to publishing via print or broadcast. Digital revolution has had an intense effect on journalism and communication today as seen below;
Digital revolution has offered rapid growth of Information and Communication that has fundamentally changed the way people think, behave, communicate, work and earn their livelihood. This therefore means that journalists and communicators have to be aware of all the changes to enable them communicate effectively. The fastest manner in which information spreads on social media calls for fast articulate writing and confirming of critical data to feed the anxious audience. Use of symbols technically called emojis has taken root. These are used to express sadness, joy among others.
Digital revolution creates an opportunity for niche audiences, allowing people to have more options as to what to view and read. The interactivity and interface provided by technological tools such as Smartphones, laptops, computers, among others has made target audiences easy to reach.
It also creates an opportunity for audiences to receive, read and keep references to any information. People have opportunities to refer to the information they want at any time. This has been eased by websites that stay for long unlike radio news or information that is said once and if you miss it you have missed forever. Gadgets like phones, flash discs are used to keep information for reference. Research centres such as the Economic Policy Research Centre, use private servers to store data which can be retrieved at a later date.
Social media platforms like face book and whatsApp are digital revolution elements which have promoted citizen journalism where people can update others on the happenings in and around their environments, for example death, parties and disasters like landslides regardless of the profession, status.
It has created new avenues of acquiring knowledge and information which are key aspect of journalism and communication. Through blogs, social media platforms like Facebook, twitter, journalists are able to learn more about their specialized areas of communication.
Digital journalism allows for connection and discussion at levels that print does not offer on its own. People can comment on articles posted online. Before digital revolution, instant discussion between readers who had never met was impossible. Online discussion enables constructive criticism that helps correct untrue information on the content posted online.
To add on these print media have adopted online journalism where dedicated websites are built to feed the online audience with news, entertainment and opinions.
Digital journalism opens up new ways of storytelling; through the technical components of the new medium, digital journalists can provide a variety of media, such as audio, video, and digital photography. This has been made possible through the various media platforms such as Projeqt.com, wordpress.com and infogram charts.
News timeliness has tremendously improved due to the onset of digital revolution. Online sources provide quick, efficient, and accurate reporting of breaking news in a matter of seconds, providing society with live events for example state events like budget readings are broadcast live which enables citizens to analyse and know the budgetary allocations in time.
On the other side, digital revolution dictates on users and consumers of online content to be literate and must use critical thinking to evaluate the credibility of information available online, nonetheless, digital revolution has however changed journalism and communication for the better. Convergence is most important aspect of digital revolution which has eased sending and receiving of information.
Catherine Eye 