RESTRUCTURING NEWS MEDIA IN THE INFORMATION AGE

Recent research in the field indicates that news media industry has been facing major changes related to production, distribution and consumption, within the last decade mostly due to the digital era. Digital technology and social media are creating a real twist within media industry at large. Audiences, that once had access to different information only by consuming media, nowadays are in the position to have open access to free information on websites, online platforms, blogs, social media, email, newsletters and others. New ways of media production and new strategies for engaging audiences are necessary. Almost 50% of Facebook users, aged between 19 and 29, in the US are getting news on their pages in spite of their clear intention, and they are also consuming online video news, according to studies. Advertising must as well reinvent itself in order to reach more and more consumers - "native advertising" that top media like The New York Times, The Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal is one relevant example. For the beginning, the paper presents the general theoretical aspects related to media - an evolution of functions, specific formats, audiences and consumptions etc. Further, the article focuses on the most recent research on media - such as "The State of the News Media 2014" that is an annual report by the Pew Research Center's Journalism Project examining the landscape of American journalism. Also, the most relevant principles of journalism are mentioned as explained in the book titled "The Elements of Journalism", that is a relevant work on the practice and principles of journalism.