C-SPAN founder looks to the Internet

TV Week has a short article on a speech given by Brian Lamb (founder of C-SPAN). He comments on how the Internet seems to be overtaking television news in the relevancy department, especially among young people (evidenced by Barack Obama's video addresses on YouTube).

In yesterday's post, I linked to an IFC-sponsored poll that said Fox News and "the Internet" are now seen as trusted and respected sources for news. Well, they can be. In fact, I feel a little guilty about ragging on Fox News when I've seen them do some good work in the past (really).

Example: When the I-35W bridge collapsed in Minneapolis in 2007, I happened to be flipping channels and noticed Fox News had reporters on the scene doing on-the-street interviews a full 10 minutes before CNN. And I thought they did an excellent job of reporting new information at regular intervals, rather than rehashing the same sound bites ad nauseum all evening.

In this media environment, I think that element of being fast and current is what gives the Internet an edge. (see also: Online Journalism's post on why video blogging is 'a good thing')

Network news might follow suit, but given they only have half an hour a day to fill, it's almost impossible to have the same kind of immediacy viewers seem to want. Maybe they'll become more series-focused (like NBC's Making a Difference)?

Like every other mass communication medium, it'll be interesting to see how news distribution continues to evolve with technology.

Blogged with the Flock Browser