Use of Internet as A Medium of Disseminating Information by Ethiopian Newspapers
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Date
2006-07
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The number of newspapers that publish online is increasing, contributing to the
development of Internet as a news medium. The present research studied the state of
Ethiopian online newspapers by examining the extent that the online newspapers utilize
Internet technology and online presentation codes. It is assumed that a state of an online
newspaper is significantly related to its usage of the Internet technology.
Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were applied. Content analysis and semistructured
interviews were the instruments used to collect data from 11 online newspapers,
which were the focus of the study. The data were analyzed using online newspaper genres,
particularly the cybergenre model of Ihlström and Åkesson (2004). The model helps to
identify the state of an online newspaper providing content, form and functionality of
different online newspapers genres. Ethiopian online newspapers were found to fall in
replicated and variant genres (Ihlström and Åkesson 2004). Their utilization of the
Internet's potential was found to be meager.
In the Ethiopian context where there is hardly any previous research in the area. Studying
online newspapers gives new knowledge and serves as a foundation for further research. In
addition, the study can be taken as constructive feedback for the online publications.
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Keywords
Disseminating Information