News: Genre conventions

• Traditionally, people who read audiences were passive. They could choose what newspaper to buy and could always write to the editor, but would accept the messages.
• Online newspapers attract a far more active audience. The website itself has little user-generated content and audiences are limited to responding to journalists…although they can do and tend to debate!
• The Twitter and Instagram feeds offer content for response.
• Remember that neither is moderated, there is much more opportunity for trolling on these feeds, but they encourage a shorter audience attention span which can discourage debate.

Regulation - Online

Online news is not regulated – unless a newspaper’s online site actively signs up to the regulator. Only print editions are regulated.

Twitter and Facebook are also not regulated. People have free speech to say what they want to.