Gulf News @40: UAE youth see print evolving
Gulf News marked 40 years in the publishing business on September 30. Over the years, it has evolved and expanded to multiple platforms. Today, the newspaper’s primary focus remains being a news content provider across print and digital channels. We have always striven to be relevant by being where our readers are and that means the website, social media channels and the newspaper. The Social Media Team spoke to our young readers, essentially millennials, to find out how they see the future of newspapers. Interestingly, contrary to general perceptions, they do not expect the demise of newspapers. They feel it will continue to be relevant, but say newspapers now need to be in line with the digital age. Read on to find out what they said...
Suman Shafi, 27-year-old Pakistani housewife
“It’s been a long time since I’ve read a newspaper. I usually get news from articles posted on social media and depending on how interested I am, I visit the website it’s from. If the newspaper would change to something more colourful and interactive, I might look at reading print.”
John Bryan, 30-year-old Filipino sales consultant
“I don’t read the newspaper. It is easier to read the news online. If I see a link on Facebook, I click on it and read. In a newspaper, when you see a promo on page one, you have to browse through the paper to find the story. I would read the printed paper if only the main stories from each country were published. In the future, I expect papers to be more digital... a hologram.”
Nour Bandali, 23-year-old Lebanese copywriter
“Reading the newspaper is a routine since I was 12. My dad and I would read it together. I feel like a lot more thought is put into print. Online gives you an update. Print covers a range of topics. In the future, it’ll be more minimalistic — smaller and compact.”
Nayla Al Khateri, 22-year-old Emirati media student
“For me and many others like me, newspapers are a reliable source of information. If the same news is on social media and the newspaper, I will look at the newspaper to make sure it is true. In future, newspapers will become more digital. If the newspaper is good and reliable, and it would in some way be able to provide news alerts at the same time each morning,
I think people would subscribe.”
Ahmad Yagoub, 25-year-old Kuwaiti law graduate working in the media industry
“Pictures draw me in. When I see an image, it makes me read the whole story. I follow a lot of newspapers on social media, and I am able to read them all in around 20 minutes. Newspapers should be shorter and also be present online, so we can get hourly updates through the day. Many news accounts pick the stories that they know their readers would like and also provide videos that you cannot get in a newspaper.”
Mohammad Sohair Tabrezi, 26-year-old Pakistani working as a business development manager
“I mostly prefer reading the news online. I usually get most of my information through social media and the Gulf News website. Having the news provided to you on your phone, on a screen, is much more convenient. In the future, if I were to read the print version, I would want more pictures in the newspaper. I think that we are moving towards a visual society and people don’t have the time to read too much — short and visual.”
Rahul Anand, 26-year-old Canadian civil engineer
“I subscribe to a newspaper, but I don’t read it often. I mainly get my news from online channels. Newspapers give you information in a gist and stories are brief because of space constraints. If the stories were more in-depth with detailed information like in online, I would read newspapers more. ”
Shreya Maheshwari, 29-year-old Indian life coach
“I lean towards books and journals for information. I like the size of a smaller newspaper more — magazine size, as you can flip the pages around easily. Also, news is not just political. I do want to know what treaties people are signing, but I also want to read about neighbourhoods, rescues, successes and more people-focused stories. I want to feel motivated. If I am inculcating the newspaper in my day, it needs to add something to my life.”