Media Convergence v. Multimedia Journalism

Media Convergence

Convergence allows news organizations and companies to broaden their audience. This strategy furthermore promotes news stories and products that can be consumed by viewers. An example of media convergence is a company like ESPN, which uses various types of media platforms, such as magazine, radio, online, social media and broadcast (http://espn.go.com/). Their site links live segments of their broadcast as well as displays TV listings and show times. The site works to promote all their forums so sports fans can be aware of the variety of ways to stay informed about their favorite teams. On the site are also advertisements, which display companies that support the company and have come together to help promote each other’s businesses. There are mutual benefits with every click of the mouse. In different sections of the website there are also scroll boxes which include social media updates and fantasy football enthusiasts mentioning their beloved news network. This further demonstrates how well ESPN has encouraged people to talk about their company.

Multimedia Journalism 

Multimedia journalism in contrast is only one dimension of convergence. It is the practice of gathering news and reporting it across multiple platforms. An example of multimedia journalism is the Los Angeles Times. They not only offer printed publications but they also combine various multimedia aspects to their news stories on their website (http://www.latimes.com/). They have a section of their news purely dedicated to photography, which is then linked to a report to an online news article or description. The text helps the reader to understand the images being displayed (http://framework.latimes.com/2012/09/04/2012-dnc/#/2). The LA Times is also on various social media platforms such as Facebook, twitter, and smart phone apps, which offer automatic updates of breaking news (https://twitter.com/latimes).  Along with their website they have interactive games such a crosswords and quizzes that can keep a reader on their webpage for hours. This innovative strategy allows the LATimes to reach a broader audience. People on the go have the ability to be informed using their favorite type of media whether it is print, video or online. The LA Times has become readily accessible and its online site has been organized in a way that people can directly click on the information they are most interested in.