Today is World Press Freedom Day, archaically named by UNESCO, an archaic organization. I was invited as one of the speakers by the Sri Lanka Press Institute for their event commemorating the World Press Freedom Day. I talked about ICTs and the Arab Spring.
The most interesting part of the discussion was the attempt by various speakers to define new media. The moderator thought that LBO.LK was new media, despite the fact that it is run exactly like a business newspaper employing journalists. Reference was made to the comments that were possible on LBO. Its editor said that they are simply a different form of letters to the editor.
I tried to distinguish between publications, irrespective of medium, that spent money producing news (MSM) and those that were simply riffs on the already existing news and information (new media), the best example being blogs.
1 Comment
Rohan Samarajiva
Coverage: http://www.sundaytimes.lk/110508/News/nws_22.html . The reporter must have come late.