THE PAPER BLUSH

Almost everybody talks about the future of the print media today. Given the development of the Internet and electronic technologies, now it is the main topic of publishing activities. The development of digital technology, as well, has an impact on the media. As a result, periodic media cuts the circulation. There is a declining interest in reading in general. But as can be seen even at first glance, the print media is still a valid source of information. This is not mere allegations. Many media experts believe that in the near future the popularity of print media will certainly recover.

You can still trust the paper

The main argument is that many users believe the veracity of information globally distributed through the Net is quite low. Many will say that traditional media can also fabricate information. But this happens much less often. This is the main difference of the printed newspapers and magazines from online resources. The best option for the reader is to obtain information both through print and online publications. It turns out that in order to survive the traditional media should continue to uphold the role of a provider of relevant, objective and quality news to the audience. Paper will retain the position of traditional quality products as an indispensable medium.

Incidentally, this issue has recently been discussed in Vienna at the European Newspaper Congress. According to influential European media expert and futurologist Matthias Horks, the human brain is more receptive to information on paper, so the European population is slowly but steadily refusing electronic books.

"Last year in Germany alone, the growth of sales of publications was 2%, which means the people is returning to the paper", he added. Mr. Horks is convinced that the level of trust to the print media is much higher, since they have the time to double-check the published information. "The Internet media is in the pursuit of "clicks" and focused on the presentation of information and the speed at the same time inflating the facts in order to attract the attention of readers. The print media, on the other hand, filters out all the unnecessary information garbage and can still supply analytical information", said Horks. According to him, the people is tired of the abundant volumes of poor information and now prefers the media that can be trusted.

The professor of the Moscow State University of Printing Arts Yelena Pushkina has noted that the majority of the readers of newspapers and magazines is older than 25. The readers below this age are more interested in getting information from various sources and at the same time are able to use all available resources. But over time, the consumers switch to more serious sources of information. "Electronic media presents information briefly and quickly. As soon as something happens somewhere, the news immediately appears in newspapers. But a human brain seeks for the context of information to deeper understand the ongoing events. If everything is confined to a small format, it overloads the human brain. The speed of information flow slows down the perception of such information", says the expert.

There's life in the old horses yet

Indeed, the aged people are more receptive to printed newspapers and magazines than online news. To some extent, this has nothing to do with their inability to use modern gadgets. Paper is getting more credible by time. Also, the less active users often feel difficulty in understanding the flow of electronic information. It requires considerable "experience" to learn how to filter threads often full of conflicting information. Just as a book, which many inveterate readers will never replace by even the most modern gadget, the smell of printing ink on a paper or a bright magazine is something ceremonial, so to speak.

What is the opinion of the Azerbaijani experts? In his interview with R+, the famous media expert Gulu Maharramli has noted that while the volume of printed news products are being reduced globally, it is still too early to think the paper is doomed total extinction. "The newspapers and other periodicals, as opposed to online publications, have a number of advantages, including the ability to create databases and data archives. As far as the efficiency and competitiveness of paper resources are concerned, they naturally cannot be compared with electronic media products. In recent years, the US has closed about 2,000 printed publications". But to be a credible source of information, according to experts, the status of the media organization must be solid. "The print media still has a lot of advantages. But the print media is less effective in terms of responsiveness, if compared to electronic media. In any case, any media organization must respect itself and proof-read the published information, regardless of the form of publication ", says Maharramli.

Another media expert, professor of journalism Zeynal Mammadli also confirms this statement: "The issue of the loss of relevance in the print media is not something new. This issue has been discussed since the times when radio and then television had gained popularity among the masses. Now, with the proliferation of electronic media and social networks, these issues have become more serious, because the Internet provides us with a different media content: print, radio, and video. "Of course, due to insignificant demand, the scale of the print media is getting down, decreasing the advertising revenues. The print media does not have many attractive options to get articles from reputable authors and experts since they do not always have the opportunity to pay them reasonable fees. If we talk about influential print media, it is more professional, more reliable”.

At the same time, the expert still believes that the printed products will not go away. Thanks to new technologies, the newspapers and magazines will only change their physical form and appearance through the creation of gadgets with flexible displays, although the principles will remain the same: "Imagine a flexible display that can be folded and rolled into a tube. I think that in the future the newspapers will be exactly as such, while maintaining all the traditions of the printing press. You will not need to leave your house and go to a shop just to buy a newspaper since it will reach you anyway, eventually. It will have no differences with the print media. I think those who will be particularly pleased with this situation will be environmentalists".

Regarding the confidence of readers to the printed and electronic media, Zeynal Mammadli thinks the Internet is very different – it is full of both articles and social networks. “With a push of a button, you can send a mail to many people at once. Given the audience scale, one can easily get confused with choosing between the information received and the media. But the prerequisites of the media are: the press is imposed serious commitments, which include responsibility and regulation, (including legal) for its own activities. In any case, the issue of trust depends on the journalists' professionalism and the quality of publications".

The expert supports the competent combination of information sources, which would allow to get initial information from electronic media and then to study the issue going to the print media more deeply and comprehensively.

It is necessary that the printed publications develop an optimal business model without abandoning the current format. This will allow them to work efficiently and successfully in the electronic age and to keep pace with the times. The talks about the "death" of the print media are premature. It continues to fight for survival in the modern information environment.