StudiesHow Online Media Affects Traditional Publishing Methods Recently, over 1,500 of your colleagues participated in a study investigating the evolution of online scientific media and how it affects the use of traditional publications such as print journals, magazines, newspapers and other circulations. Established publishing companies initially responded to the possible threat of online media by adopting an online format and creating online subscriptions services. Traditional media outlets remain concerned about the increasing amount of scientific information that is available online for free, in addition to the evolving means for scientists to collaborate and transfer information through outlets such as online forums, chat rooms, wikis, podcasts, and online scientific communities (“social media”). This study presents the expectations and preferences of scientists.  A few questions to get you thinking: • What tactics will traditional media publishers adopt in order to stay competitive? • Will traditional publications retain a strong presence or deteriorate over time? • Do you prefer print or online publications? What’s the value of one over the other? • What types of social media do you use? What do you find useful – or not? • What are your opinions on Open Source publications? • Do you witness a generational difference in the types of social media used and their preference for traditional publications versus online publications?  Publishers who use traditional formats are in a good position to retain their readers by embracing social media tools and incorporating these into their web-based operations. A large number of scientists prefer online subscriptions, rather than print versions. A significant advantage with online social media is that it allows scientists to quickly read, save, bookmark, rate usefulness, provide comments/feedback in real-time for others to expand upon and email/tag the publication to another individual. Key Findings: • Reliability on traditional media for accurate scientific information is decreasing. • The use of social media has increased and has enabled scientists to access a higher number of resources, with more variety. • Scientists are becoming more aware of the variety of social media tools available & their utility is viewed with increasing importance. • As scientists become more aware of and draw on more aspects of Web 2.0, there are distinctive variations in use by generation.  [ View Current & Future Studies ] [ View Past Studies ] |
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