5 Biggest Differences between an Online News Site and a Printed Newspaper

There are a lot of differences between the writing done for online news and the writing done for printed newspapers.  The style is different; the sourcing is different as well as the pricing, etc.  You can run into a few problems if you should handle these two news types the same.  To avoid extensive revising, declining readers, and more, you can keep these 5 major differences in mind.

5 Major differences you cannot ignore:

  1. Readers: Older people might still prefer the printed version better than the online version, while the younger generation prefers the online editions.  But, if you like news, you would not mind that much where you read it.  The facts that are written will still be the same.
  2. Portability: Printed newspaper editions can be carried everywhere.  Online editions can be a bit more difficult.  You need to carry your laptop or phone or other electronic devices with you and you also need an internet connection.
  3. Space: Newspaper print editions do have limitations on space, online versions not so much.  But even if the online editions have more room, people will still only read until something more interesting pops up  Print editions needs to fit the information in a certain allotted space.  Online editions might want to keep it short to keep the attention of the reader.
  4. Sourcing: With print editions, the sourcing requirements are very strict.  You may not print anything that has not been verified.  Online you can hyperlink to the source-material which will verify your facts.  Accountability is much stricter for printed sourcing than for the online news site’s sourcing.
  5. Interaction: You cannot have an immediate response from your readers with print editions.  They do take part in opinion polls and give comments, but it will only be published at a later stage.  Online News Sites you can take part in opinion polls, write comments, etc. immediately.  You do not have to wait for a result because feedback is immediate.

Even though there are differences between these two newspaper versions, their goal is still the same, and both still play a part in spreading the news.

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