From the Print Press to Online Press: Constraints and Liberties of the Journalistic Discourse

The digital practice was born of new behaviours: you can inform yourself differently than reading the papers; you can take part in events through mailing lists, blogs or social networks. The media keeps for the time being its traditional functions but due to the technological changes it always creates new functions. Our curiosity is focused on the interaction created. The dangers of the online press create a tension between the traditional media and the new technologies of mass communication. This concerns the very existence of written versions or only the public type, the discursive types? The evolution of the media should focus on the goals they propose, on the means which are at their disposal and on their target audiences. The material constraints express themselves through traditional forms of journalistic genres, different time scales, gaps and especially through the relations of communication between the journalist and the reader constantly in change. The adaptation of writing is closely related to the new relation journalist - reader. Should we invent new rhythms of writing? What type of information must be revealed in the online form of the written press? Should it be different in order to keep, multiply or vary the public? This work aims to give the answer to the questions mentioned by using the appearance of two Romanian national newspapers and their online counterparts written versions for a week. In terms of journalistic discourse, there are certain gaps. This study aims to highlight the changes in discourse and the transformations of journalistic language practices between the two types of media. As far as we know, his type of comparative study for the Romanian press has not yet been performed. (C) 2012 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.