Digital media has opened up the world of news, expanding it from a physical enterprise to something that can be accessed by anyone, anywhere, at any time. The shift from print media to digital media has been a gradual process, with many businesses and news outlets utilising both methods to try and reap the benefits of both mediums simultaneously.
Today, the movement from one to the other is becoming more rapid and widespread, and it seems to be inevitable that within the near future, print media will eventually become obsolete. However, the process is still complicated and comes with many issues to consider on both sides.
Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of print media.
Traditional Print Media
The traditional form of media, print media refers to things like newspapers, magazines, billboards, brochures, business cards, coupons and even packaging in some cases. All of these examples act as modes and mediums of advertising that are physical and exist in an infinite number of units.
Today, in world in which print media exists alongside digital media, many people still insist that you just can’t beat a good newspaper or a magazine. Being able to hold the physical copies of these issues and read them from paper is just incomparable to reading from a screen.
However, there are many issues that print media brings – including high printing costs as well as logistical difficulties and costs as well. Every single copy of a newspaper, magazine or whatever else it is, costs money to print and then has to be sold, delivered and sold again.
It’s a long process that is costly and may often end in wastage – copies are printed based on estimated demand, so however many are not sold are simply thrown away and the money used to make them wasted.
One of the most significant disadvantages of print media is that it simply doesn’t have as wide of a reach as digital media does. That is, because it exists only in its physical form, its reach is limited and it is finite – it can only be purchased by consumers in the area.
Digital media, on the other hand, completely eliminates this problem by boasting a seemingly infinite reach. By having the media available on the internet, articles and advertisements can reach people all over the world, and the extra cost to broaden the pool of potential viewers isn’t based on individual consumers.
However, one advantage that print media has over digital media that certainly ought to be noted is that it is able to bring in an easily defined profit. That is, it’s easier and more straightforward to make money by selling individual copies of newspapers or magazines as opposed to something that exists on the internet like betting online sports sites and is often available to just about anybody for very little charge – if any at all.
Thus, while the days of print media certainly do seem to be numbered, the physical medium still boasts its own advantages that are simply not enjoyed by the digital medium.
