Is the iPad taking over?

According to this article, Rupert Murdoch, CEO of NewsCorp had launched the iPad-only newspaper which is similar like a daily newspaper but just updated constantly. Viewers can access videos and Twitter feeds to be updated on the latest developments. One of NewsCorp subsidiary, The London Times, began charging $4 per week which led to the declining print media. Though many are using the online media, there are still a certain amount of people who prefer physical newspaper or reading articles on a desktop.

Though the media is advancing, I believe there would still be certain people who would remain the making of newspapers. The modes present in an iPad would be more intense and original as compared to reading newspapers. Taken for example, the difference when reading the sports results on a newspaper and reading it online using an iPad. Both ways have their advantages and disadvantages.

Quote from New Media Trend Watch (2011), “Tablets are taking our entertainment experience in a new direction, and in the next two to five years, the tablet could serve as your universal remote control”. Similarly, the iPad and other tablets are not only changing the media but also the entertainment industry. All sorts of games and music are provided literally right at the tip of one’s fingers.

Quote Kress & van Leeuwen (1996), “The place of visual communication in a given society can only be understood in the context of, on the one hand, the range of forms or modes of public communication available in that society and, on the other hand, their uses and valuations”. While browsing through a newspaper on the iPad, one can access more, having more physicality compared to reading from a normal newspaper. There are additional modes provided in using an iPad to read a newspaper as it helps enhance not only the article but provide maximum satisfaction for the reader. There is accessibility and convenience in reading with an iPad.

References:

1. Kress, G & van Leeuwen, T 1996, Reading Images: The Grammar of Visual Design, Routledge, London.

2. New Media Trend Watch, 2011, Mobile Devices, European Travel Commission, viewed 12^th November 2011, < http://www.newmediatrendwatch.com/world-overview/98-mobile-devices?start=1>.