Digital news and silver surfers An examination of older Australians engagement with news online
Main Article Content
Keywords
online journalism, digital divide, accessability, particpatory journalism, news, design and useability
Abstract
With media organisations placing increasing emphasis on online news delivery, many have argued the potential for online media to enhance democracy, by enabling increased access to the public debate and a greater ability for citizens to influence the public agenda. Within this complex paradigm of a changing media landscape, Australia's population is ageing. As a result, understanding the needs of older Australians in the presentation and distribution of digital news is vital if we are to ensure intergenerational equity in access to public debate. However, very little work has examined how older Australians engage with news online. Drawing on a survey of Australians aged 41-84, this exploratory study examines the preferences of participants in news engagement, the role of presentation and distribution of online news in engagement and perceived barriers to accessing news online and on mobile devices.
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Schrøder, K.C. 2014. ‘News media old and new’. Journalism Studies, 16(1), 60-78.
van Dijck, J. 2009. ‘Users like you? Theorizing agency in user-generated content’. Media Culture Society, 31(1), 41-58.
Van Dijk, J.; Hacker, K. 2003. ‘The digital divide as a complex and dynamic phenomenon’. Information Society 19(4), 315–326.
Wagner, N.; Hassanein, K.; Head, M. 2010. ‘Computer use by older adults: a multi-disciplinary review’. Computers in Human Behavior, 26(5), 870-882.
Zickuhr, K.; Smith, A. 2012. ‘Digital differences’.: Pew Research Center. Accessed June 2014. Available at: http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Digital-differences.aspx
Becker, S. A. 2004. ‘A study of web usability for older adults seeking online health resources’. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 11(4), 387-406.
Bowman, W.; Willis, C. 2003. 'We media: how audiences are shaping the future of news and information’. The Media Center, Accessed 11 April 2012. Available from: http://www.hypergene.net/wemedia/weblog.php.
Bruns, A. 2011. ‘News produsage in a pro-am mediasphere: why citizen journalism matter’, in G Meikle & G Redden (eds.), News Online: Transformations and Continuities, Palgrave Macmillan, London, UK, 132-147.
Burns, P.; Jones, S. C.; Iverson, D.; Caputi, P. (2012). Riding the wave or paddling in the shallows?: Understanding older Australians' use of the internet. Health Promotion Journal of Australia: Official Journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals, 23(2), 145-148.
Costera Meijer, I.; Groot Kormelink, T. 2014. ‘Checking, sharing, clicking and linking’. Digital Journalism, (Ahead of print). DOI:10.1080/21670811.2014.937149.
Domingo, D., Marsip, P.; Costera Meijer, I. 2015. ‘Tracing Digital News Networks’. Digital Journalism, 3 (1), 53-67.
Flew, T.; Spurgeon, C.; Daniel, A.; Swift, A. 2011. ‘Convenience, loyalty and customising users: the behaviours and intentions of young online news users in Australia’. Australian Journalism Review, 33(2), 99-112.
Friemel, T. N. 2014. ‘The digital divide has grown old: Determinants of a digital divide among seniors’. New Media & Society. (Ahead of print) doi:1461444814538648.
Gillmor, D. 2004. We The Media, O’Reilly Media, Sebastopol, CA.
Hakkarainen, P. 2012. ‘No good for shovelling snow and carrying firewood’: social representations of computers and the Internet by elderly Finnish non-users’. New Media & Society, 14(7), 1198-1215.
Helsper, E.J. 2010. ‘Gendered Internet use across generations and life stages’. Communication Research 37(3), 352–374.
Hermida, A.; Fletcher, F.; Korell, D.; Logan, D. 2012. ‘Share, like, recommend: Decoding the social media news consumer’. Journalism Studies, 13(5-6), 815-824.
Hilt, M. L.; Lipschultz, J. H. 2004. ‘Elderly Americans and the internet: e-mail, Tv news, information and entertainment websites’. Educational Gerontology, 30(1), 57-72.
Karavidas, M.; Lim, N. K.; Katsikas, S. L. 2005. ‘The effects of computers on older adult users’. Computers in Human Behavior, 21(5), 697-711.
Kohut, A. 2013. ‘Pew surveys of audience habits suggest perilous future for news’ Accessed 10 January 2014. Available from: http://www.poynter.org/news/mediawire/225139/pew-surveys-of-audience-habits-suggest-perilous-future-for-news/
Korupp, S.E.; Szydlik, M. 2005. ‘Causes and trends of the digital divide’. European Sociological Review 21(4), 409–422.
Kurniawan, S. H.; King, A.; Evans, D. G.; Blenkhorn, P. L. 2006. ‘Personalising web page presentation for older people’. Interacting with Computers, 18(3), 457-477.
Madden, M. 2010. ‘Pew: older adults' use of social media nearly doubles’. Pew Research Center. Accessed 10 January 2014. Available from http://www.pewinternet.org/files/oldmedia//Files/Reports/2010/Pew%20Internet%20-%20Older%20Adults%20and%20Social%20Media.pdf
McCausland, L.; Falk, N. L. 2012. ‘From dinner table to digital tablet: technology's potential for reducing loneliness in older adults’. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing & Mental Health Services, 50(5), 22-26
Millward, P. 2003. ‘The”grey digital divide”: Perception, exclusion and barriers of access to the Internet for older people’. First Monday, 8(7).
Morris, A.; Goodman, J.; Brading, H. 2007. ‘Internet use and non-use: views of older users’. Universal Access in the Information Society, 6(1), 43-57.
Peacock, S.; Künemund, H. 2007. ‘Senior citizens and Internet technology’. European Journal of Ageing, 4(4), 191-200.
Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. 2012. ‘Trends in news consumption: 1991-2012: In changing news landscape, even television is vulnerable’. Accessed 10 January 2014. Available from http://www.people-press.org/files/legacy-pdf/2012%20News%20Consumption%20Report.pdf
Picone, I.; Courtois, C.; Paulussen, S. 2014. ‘When News is Everywhere’. Journalism Practice, (Ahead of print) DOI: 10.1080/17512786.2014.928464
Robinson, S.; DeShano, C. 2011. ‘Citizen journalists and their third places’. Journalism Studies, 12(5): 642-657.
Rosen, J. 2006. ‘The people formerly known as the audience’. Press Think. Accessed 10 July 2009. Available from: http://archive.pressthink.org/2006/06/27/ppl_frmr.html
Selwyn, N.; Gorard, S.; Furlong, J.; Madden, L. 2003. ‘Older adults' use of information and communications technology in everyday life’. Ageing & Society, 23(05), 561-582.
Sirkkunen, E.; Cook, C. 2012. ‘Chasing sustainability on the net’. Tampere Research Centre for Journalism, Media and Communication. Accessed - accessed 7 April 2014. Available from: http://www.journalismfund.eu/sites/default/files/SuBMoJour Study.pdf.
Schrøder, K.C. 2014. ‘News media old and new’. Journalism Studies, 16(1), 60-78.
van Dijck, J. 2009. ‘Users like you? Theorizing agency in user-generated content’. Media Culture Society, 31(1), 41-58.
Van Dijk, J.; Hacker, K. 2003. ‘The digital divide as a complex and dynamic phenomenon’. Information Society 19(4), 315–326.
Wagner, N.; Hassanein, K.; Head, M. 2010. ‘Computer use by older adults: a multi-disciplinary review’. Computers in Human Behavior, 26(5), 870-882.
Zickuhr, K.; Smith, A. 2012. ‘Digital differences’.: Pew Research Center. Accessed June 2014. Available at: http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Digital-differences.aspx
Article Sidebar
Published
Sep 28, 2015
Article Details
How to Cite
Barnes, R. (2015). Digital news and silver surfers An examination of older Australians engagement with news online. Journal of Telecommunications and the Digital Economy, 3(3), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.18080/jtde.v3n3.16
Issue
Section
Telecommunications
Copyright Telecommunications Association Inc.
Author Biography
Renee Barnes, University of the Sunshine Coast
Dr Renee Barnes is a senior lecturer and program co-ordinator for journalism at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia. She is a member of the university’s research cluster Engage, which is concerned with researching and develop interactive technologies where users can become involved, informed and inspired to change their world. Her research interests are focused on the online news audience, alternative and independent news media and social media.
