No one told me there would be days like
this.
How could my journalism professors, many who
learned their trade in post-war Fleet St. and came to Canada in
the "glory days" of print journalism to work in Toronto at The
Telegram, the Star, the Globe or Macleans magazine during the
1960s, have known or predicted back in the 1980s that something
called the Internet would change communications as radically as
the telephone and television had before it? 
 
 
How would they know that newspapers would be
forced, some pushed, into combining radio's immediacy and
television's ability to tell stories with pictures to provide a
new form of journalism that's 24/7.
 
The Internet, as you already know, has
taken some of the control of media out of the hands of the
people who own the newspapers and broadcast signals, and the
journalists who gather information, and given it to
consumers.
 
People can now read newspapers from around
the world online, as well as listen to radio stations from
Europe, or watch television programs they missed the night
before on the Internet. People can have their own websites
and blogs to express their unedited opinions on everything.
Controversial photographs that for many reasons would not be
printed in newspapers appear on the Internet and set the news
agenda.
Northern Life launched its website four years ago. It has been a success with our regular newspaper readers as well as thousands of former residents who tell us they go to our site to find out what is happening at home.
Northern Life launched its website four years ago. It has been a success with our regular newspaper readers as well as thousands of former residents who tell us they go to our site to find out what is happening at home.
 
It has taken "old school" print reporters
like me a while to get accustomed the vast potential of
NorthernLife.ca. It has challenged us and changed us. It has
turned a newspaper, which is published three times a week,
into a daily information portal.
 
Last month, we revamped the site and made
some improvements that we hope will make it easier for
readers to find the information they are looking for.
 
For me the most interesting new feature is
that readers can now provide instant feedback on stories,
letters and columns.
 
And unlike the more "stogy" letters to the
editor which appear in the newspaper, the comments can be
made anonymously. Many readers have told us they would like
to make comments about their community and its leaders, but
are afraid to "in a small town" like Sudbury.
 
With some limits - we view submissions
before they go live for good taste and libelous comments -
the new comment feature allows readers a chance to have their
say on the issues of the day.
 
This is a great way for me to get a good
idea about what readers are concerned about, what they want
to read about, and what they are bored about seeing in the
newspaper.
 
There are lots of other exciting things
happening at Northern Life and NorthernLife.ca. We have many
ideas and plans to service our readers better.
 
And we would be glad to hear from you our
readers. Visit our website to make comments on stories, send
me an
e-mail
or drop me a old-fashioned letter at 158 Elgin St., Sudbury,
P3E 3N5.
Vicki Gilhula is the managing editor of Northern Life.
