Students prefer print newspapers

Poynter Online blog reports its research that college students -- who may be the digital generation and live online -- prefer their college newspapers to be printed on paper.

I agree both from watching online viewership as well as how many Marquette Tribunes are picked up in the printed version. As to why, I especially agree with a student quoted in the blog: "Stephen Heleker, student body president at Boise State University, told me in an e-mail that students spend so much time on computers doing school work that 'they value the respite offered' by the print version of the college newspaper. 'It definitely becomes part of the routine at college.'" As someone who spends hours on computers daily, including hours spent look at news sites, I really value my time to sit with a printed newspaper (I read the Tribune, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Wall Street Journal print editions). I also believe I learn so much more in print.

Why should students study journalism?

NPR's "Morning Edition" has a nice five-minute report on the subject this morning. Interestingly, last week one of my students brought up the same topic. The class ("Publication Editing") discussed it, and we found that three of the 11 class members weren't journalism majors at all -- one was an advertising major and two were English majors. They were taking it because they saw a need for more editing and that specialized journalism training that is so easily mocked these days.