Chip Scanlon plays the wise sage in this article. He has been a writer long anough to know that things change and you need to "go with the flow".But he has been a good writewr and knows that some things should never change. He writes about the new technology that is now such an integral part of journalism and news writing. Not only has the internet age allowed for worldwide communication, it allows for world apart interviews. This certainly provides a new horizon when a journalist can interview "together" world leaders, personalities or figures of importance at one time. Can provide communication, both audio and visual, between all and do so on a live broadcast. But he reminds would -be writers and journalists that there are practices that good journalism will always require of a writer. First is the face-to-face interview. A video conference or telephone conference simply cannot replace what this brings to a good story. The interaction between interviewee and interviewer, "the texture, completeness and accuracy that only person-to-person reporting can bring" to a story is left out in a long distance interview. anyone who has studied digitally formatted information,agrees that "users don't scroll" and frequently "read only the top part of an article". For this reason writers on the Web often resort to short articles with eye-catching headlines. Scanlon cautions that this type of reporting, especially when it relies on visual and/or audio technology, cannot replace a well written article or broadcast that engages it's reader/listener and relies on well documented, factual information. He compares a broadcast writer who often writes to enhance what the vieweer sees and hears to the print writer who uses words and story to create an image on the screen that is the readers mind.
I tend to agree with Mr. Scolon. The new technology available to writers provides a wealth of opportunity and innovation but this cannot replace the tenacity and talent of a reporter who interviews the principles, researches the subject and writes to engage the reader with the words and story. Certainly this type of writer will have readers using the scroll bar before they do the back button.
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