The digital age has come, and
businesses must adapt to the changing trends in technology. Businesses that
want to stay on top of their industry must use new technology so they do not
get left behind.

The media industry is one of those
that followed suit, but there were negative impacts to its other source of
income. For print media, for example, the rate of circulation has dramatically
decreased. For radio broadcast, analogue radio channels may soon become a thing
of the past.

A recent Reuters study has found that news organizations have changed their business models as they switched to digital media – changing the way news is delivered to the masses which means buying new equipment that would enhance news delivery.

Here are some of the changes the
media organizations are undergoing to adapt to the changing needs of the
people.

Some news organizations have closed news offices in some areas, and consolidated them into one bigger bureau.

Smaller media organizations have chosen to merge with bigger ones to keep their businesses profitable. They admit to have gained better media experience and online exposure after the merger.

There is an increased competition to be on top of Facebook and Google searches and advertising. Many of the organizations have relied heavily on these platforms to bring them a good share of audiences. This is their way of keeping the organization going in the digital age because of poor circulation – people are no longer buying newspapers, and would rather read the news online.

The media is also looking into the viability of paid content, as well as other platforms like podcasts, blogging, etc.

They are also looking into revenues from local sources by featuring local events and inviting local businesses to advertise on web pages specifically dedicated to local news. This remains an important part of the community because people want to know what’s happening in their locality, particularly if they’ve been away for some time.

Local folks would also love the exposure through big organizations that offer local coverage, especially if they have causes and want to be heard by a bigger audience.

Newsrooms have been re-designed with the latest digital technologies to be able to deliver news on time or in real time because people who hear about day to day incidents and news want to know about it immediately. News organizations use Facebook live, and live coverages that is shared in real time.

With the loss of revenue from analogue radios and newspaper circulation, news organizations are looking at alternate sources of revenue like website traffic/clicks, business advertising on their website, affiliate marketing, paid subscriptions, etc.

Local media is finding it hard to recruit young reporters to join their company. Young reporters are looking into larger organizations as they are well-known and provides better pay.

Despite the challenges faced by media organizations, they remain a strong force in the delivery of reliable and trustworthy information. They remain an important part of people’s daily lives. And so, they do their best to keep up with the challenges by way of innovation and forward thinking.

Though some of their sources of
revenue may soon become obsolete, people can be assured that the news media
will continue to provide information all day and all night.

News is still a very important part of everyday
life as people’s need to be informed continues. However, the way news is
sourced is changing.

Digital media has hugely affected journalism in
a good and bad way.

For two decades now, online journalism has
existed side by side with print journalism, however, online journalism is
gaining grounds.

The new trends in journalism have given way to
new challenges. Here are some of the prominent ones:

Decreasing Newspaper Circulation

A day may come when printed newspapers may become a thing of the past. Some Millennials and Generation Z may not even have the faintest idea of what a newspaper is. The young generation may only get to know what it is through pictures found in the web.

These days, more and more people are sourcing their news from the
internet through live streams and other digital sources.

Media giants who have controlled the industry for decades are losing grip of their throne, and losing control about how people think.

Various information sources available on the internet have now made the people themselves as sources of news as they share live feeds of incidents on various social media.

Personalized News Feeds

With hundreds of online news sources over the internet that offer
daily news to people’s inboxes and social media feeds, they can now choose what
information they want to receive, and eliminate news about things they are not
interested in.

News Accuracy is Sacrificed

The internet has put pressure on journalists to produce news on 24
hours a day, seven days a week. This makes verification of facts and getting
all sides to a story difficult because of the need to produce news quickly.
Journalists would often only have one side of the story, without verifying its
authenticity from someone who may be accused of a misdeed or wrong decision.
News accuracy is definitely getting sacrificed.

Lowered Standards

The battle for readership, viewership and subscribers or followers
has made some media sources to lower their standards when it comes to covering
the news. Some media companies have chosen to sensualise their news in order to
gain the greatest number of clicks from followers. They also come up with intriguing
headlines that are often not the actual story of an article. Some call this
‘clickbait journalism’.

Proliferation of Fake News

This is probably the worst thing that happened to journalism when
internet and social media became abundant.

A lot of sites who claim to be authentic news sources have actually published fake news articles or concocted stories about various personalities and incidents. What’s worse is that people actually believe them because they look true and real.

In most instances, these news articles turn out to be fake and far
from the truth. The bad thing about this as well is that personalities involved
in the news earn the ire of readers and are profusely criticised for something
they did not do.

To sum it up, reliable news sources must not
give in to the temptations of high readership volume in social media. They
should never compromise the standards of accuracy they have hold on to and has
espoused for so long.

What is your favorite radio station? How often
do you listen to it? What device do you use to listen to the radio?

These and other related questions will soon be answered
as the British government reviews the state of the radio industry.

The review was recently announced by the
Department for Digital Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) through its head, Margot
James MP. The review wishes to know the relevance of analogue radios as
compared to digital radios.

What are analogue radios?

The earliest radio signal was heard in the airwaves in the 1900s courtesy of its inventor, Guglielmo Marconi. In 1943, Nikola Tesla invented the very first modern terrestrial or analogue radio which is the basis of the radios being used at present.

Come to think of it, nothing much has really
changed with its design, except for the aesthetics. The initial design is still
in use. In fact, working old radios are still able to pick up analogue radio
signals.

The principle of receiving radio signal hasn’t
changed – it requires a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter is located
in a steel tower and sends radio waves. It is then received by an analogue
radio, and goes through two modulations: Amplitude Modulation (AM) and
Frequency Modulation (FM). The received AM signal has a frequency range of
49MHz, while FM is at 800MHz.

What are digital radios?

A study conducted by the authorized body that
measures radio listening in the UK, the Radio Joint Audience Research (RAJAR),
indicates that 35 million radio listeners tune in to radio through digital
platforms.

The study also reported that 52.6 percent of
British listeners tune in to radios using digital platforms. And that this
number sees an annual increase of two percent.

It also specified that of the 52.6 percent
digital listeners, 38.3 percent listen to DAB (digital audio broadcasting)
radios, 9.4 percent through online/mobile apps, and the 5 percent through
digital TVs.

The switch to digital platforms has been credited to the clearer and better signals they offer.

Signal reception is also more consistent through
digital channels.

So, what’s the difference between these three
types of digital platforms?

DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting) Radio: DAB was an experiment began in 1981, until its full development and first world launching on June, 1995. It initially used MP2 technology, but has since made huge improvements.

It offers better use of the radio airwaves spectrum, and is able to offer other radio services at the same bandwidth as its analogue counterparts.

It initially used MP2 technology, but has since made huge improvements. It offers better use of the radio airwaves spectrum, and is able to offer other radio services at the same bandwidth as its analogue counterparts.

Online Radio Apps or Internet Radio: As the name implies, these are radio apps that can be downloaded
from the internet into a mobile device. It is available for Android, Apple,
Blackberry, and Windows devices. There are a lot of apps offered for free,
while some require subscription or download fees.

Internet radios, on the other hand, can be
accessed through live streaming.

Digital TV: With
the launch of smart television, it added a feature for radio listening. Signals
can be received via the internet if the TV is connected to your internet via
cable or Wi-Fi. Special cables can also be used to receive radio signals on
TVs.

At present, Norway is the first country to have
completed its transition to digital radio, and has totally shut down the
broadcast of FM stations through analogue channels.

The UK may soon follow suit depending on the
result of the review it is conducting. With the huge number of listeners
currently using digital radio, it is highly likely it would also fully
transition to digital formats in the near future.

Music is a part of our lives. It
creates different moods – – it can make us sad when we hear a song that reminds
us of a heartache; it can make us work harder on our exercise routine when we
workout with a lively music, and so on.

Indeed, music is an important part of everyday life. What would life be like without it? For people who can’t survive a day without music, app developers have created radio apps for Android and Apple mobile devices to ensure a continuous musical experience.

Check out which app best suits your
taste from our selection below.

1. TuneIn

Price: FREE
(Premium version is $9.99 a month)

Compatibility: Android,
Apple, Blackberry, and Windows devices

Features:

• It is the most versatile app because it is compatible with most devices
• It offers the greatest number of stations which is about 100,000 channels
• It allows users to add stations that are not in the list
• It is linked to TuneIn.com which allows you to manage your favourites
• It can play channels on news and sports, including podcasts or audiobooks

2. myTuner Radio

Price: FREE
(Premium version is £3.19)

Compatibility: Android
and Apple devices

Features:

• Offers 50,000 stations to tune into
• Provides artist search by name
• Provides an easily accessible list of top 100 songs
• Offers various song types – pop, jazz, classic, etc.
• Offers access to around 100 channels from other countries
• It also has podcasts
• It requires internet connection

3. Radioplayer

Price: FREE

Compatibility: Android
and Apple devices

Features:

• It has more than 450 UK stations
• Recommends local radio stations depending on your location
• Allows users to save favourite stations
• It has podcast features
• Shows tweets related to the programme you’re tuned into
• It has an alarm clock
• It requires internet connection

4. Radio FM Live

Price: FREE

Compatibility: Android
devices

Features:

• Provides 30,000 stations to tune into, including popular radio stations in the UK
• Provides a list of the most recent radio stations you’ve tuned into
• It has a sleep timer
• It has an alarm clock
• Allows search by radio station location
• Allows search by genre
• Allows search by language
• It requires internet connection
• May have ads

5. Simple Radio

Price: FREE

Compatibility: Android
and Apple devices

Features:

• It has 40,000 station plus UK channels
• It allows users to save their favourite stations that can be
  accessed with one tap
• It requires internet connection
• It has ads

Overall, your use of these radio apps will require you to connect to the internet so even if the radio app is free to use, you may incur charges for internet connectivity.

For some Android devices,
connecting to a radio station may not require an internet connection if it has
a built-in radio. The radio feature on Android phones allows users to access
local radio stations nearest to their location. Unfortunately, this feature is
not available across all Apple devices.

Radios are recognized for their productivity and convenience. Radio devices are equipped into all larger products today such as your laptop or pc, your automobile or maybe iPod or iPhone. Many mp3 players regardless of the make come with an FM plus an AM mode. These are the 2 kinds of radio bandwidths. The am stands for amplitude modulation setting and has a bandwidth of 535 to 1705 kHz.

The FM function is the frequency modulated method and features a bandwidth of eighty-eight to hundred eight MHz. The radio unit has existed for donkey’s decades as an entertainment system. It’s the most widely used entertainment product available in the most and poorest backward locations of all. The radio continues to be originally managed by the government but today there are numerous other personal radio stations which have come up. Every community has radio stations of their very own that the people are able to tune into.

Radio is regarded as the well known amongst individuals who like listening to it even though they drive from work to vice or home versa. Nevertheless, the radio stations are normal to the city just and aren’t available in some other cities. The antenna won’t have the ability to stream in the radio wavelengths currently being produced by stations in some other cities.

However, times have changed. They’ve become more complicated and individuals no longer have to rely on the age-old mechanism any longer. They are able to only use the web on their computers or cell phones to stream in radio stations from around the planet. This has demonstrated to be incredibly helpful for individuals who are dissatisfied with what they’re receiving in their towns or maybe their area stations.

Occasionally individuals might relocate to another city and might not have the ability to stay within the language, music, and culture in the community the have shifted to. Or maybe they might only need a favorite station they’d want listening to on their approach to work. At such times it will be not possible to do this had there been no web. Luckily in case you have a web-compatible phone next you are able to tune into any station from anywhere you’re and also sync it together with your automobile stereo system to enjoy the air on the car’s speaker system.

At times folks might wish to pay attention to a completely different genre type of design and music of station which might not be offered to them from the town of the locality they’re in. this might prove to be somewhat of an inconvenience. However, in case they simply work with their web to stream their preferred station in, there is going to be zero need to have a hard spot!

Though seemingly minor this benefit that online or maybe online radio has supplied for individuals particularly the youth that is much more techno-savvy than the earlier generations. you might need to head out there stay in a situation in which you’re traveling home and are trapped in a traffic jam and also realize that each station around is playing the best tasteless music there’s. That’s when you are going to see exactly how hearing the music of your decision will improve your spirits and you’ll come to learn this advantage!