"New Media and the Slow Death of the Written Word" essay

Technology in the 21st century has greatly influenced the ways in which we work and communicate in our everyday lives. Whether it is seen by the increase in use of computers or the decline of the interestingness of the newspaper, we have now entered an era where the “New Media” has prevailed and for those who need to adapt to this change, there are rules that can be adhered to for a better transition into this computer-ruled time period. In “New Media and the Slow Death of the Written Word”, we see that the author advocates old text and even admits to wanting to advocate “print on paper rather than computers” at first but then eventually realized that these old texts had some issues that needed to be resolved. So, even though he still loves the old text, he realized that the New Media had a new way of communicating with his audience, as Birkert and Postman, opponents who believed that New Media would be taking away appreciation of old text, had to realize. The New Media has made it possible to not only enhance but also appreciate old texts. To allow this connection to even happen, Mark Zeltner developed ten basic rules, using what he learned through experience, to serve as a guide for students learning to write for the new-media.
The first rule is to “keep it tight, short paragraphs, simple active sentences, treat every word as a rare and valuable jewel.” Basically, when writing on, for example a website, one needs to stay short and to the point as to not lose the attention span of the readers. The second rule is to “break your text into appropriate "chunks" for reading, [and] be aware of content when deciding between click or scroll” make it so that it’s easy for your reader to keep up with what your trying to say so that they don’t lose interest (because of our low attention span) when they constantly have to click to get somewhere. This rule seems to go hand in hand with the first one. If we stay short and to the point, there would be no need to watch how much the person has to click or scroll because everything should be right there in front of them. Therefore, I think this rule can just be combined with the first one and not have to be its own rule. The third rule is to “think in modules, preplan possible paths for your reader, and insure that important information is difficult or impossible to miss”. This is a very important rule because, again going with the short attention span idea, many readers just want to know what they need to know and that’s it. So, for example, important information that an author wants known should be placed at the top of the piece of writing so when readers are just skimming the articles, as many may do, the information that is important should not be missed because it’s the first thing read. The fourth rule is to use images mostly to convey messages that you cannot convey with words and use thumbnails to link to higher resolution images. There are definitely times when “pictures speak louder than words”, for example, one could never fully understanding the intensity of that picture from the holocaust with the skinny people in striped uniforms laying on top each other (see what I mean?) without seeing the picture.
The fifth rule is to use audio clips to add to the reader’s and experience, not to distract them. We all know that if we hear our favorite song, or if we hear a voice coming from the page we just clicked on, w will stay on the page long enough to see what it’s about, so why not use it to get your work noticed, or even just to add to your work (like adding Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech to the paper your writing about the civil rights movement). The sixth rule, which can very well be combined with the fifth, states that digital files should be kept short. I both agree and disagree in the sense that they should be short as to not lose the attention of the audience, but it should also be long enough to include all that it should to be considered as enough supporting evidence. The seventh rule states “All footnotes should be linked back to a bibliography page and preferably anchored to the specific text you are referencing. Don't entice your reader to abandon you for greener pastures (see the problems with hyperlinks but please come back). Inform them and then entice them back on the main road.” As part of the “audience” I know that I am often a wanderer. If there is something interesting that comes up as I am navigating away from the page, it is likely that I will not return to the page again (unless I’m forced to because it is school related). For example, If I am reading an excerpt about different techniques used in the news, and then I see a link to an interesting article about my favorite TV show, I am more likely to go read more articles like that rather than keep reading some boring article. The eighth rule is saying the same thing as the seventh rule, using the word hyperlinks instead of footnotes, so the repetition is unnecessary. Speaking of hyper linking, rule number nine says that if we must use them, they should be used to hyperlink to sidebars or “supporting information of your own creation to supplement your document.” For example “let's say you are writing about the architecture of New State University. You might create a sidebar about historic campus buildings that no longer exist. What happened to them? Why were they torn down or how where they destroyed. What building or recognizable campus landmark took their place? You might also include a short sidebar on each man or woman that had a building named after them. Why was the building named after this individual? What was their connection to the campus?” just adding to what’s there. The writer should also have many different ways to get back to the main article so that the reader is less likely to go off track (as was demonstrated in the news example). Finally, rule number ten is to add mood or meaning to you piece of work. The audience will more likely be enthused by a piece of work that they can relate to or stands out. For example, when we first made our blogs, I was more interested in seeing what was done to those with more on their page than those who just put their name and birthday on the blog. This rule seems to bring it all together because, after all, isn’t a large audience what the “New Media” is after?
Zeltner’s rules prove Postman and Birkert wrong by showing that not only is the written word still a vital part of our lives but that the New Media is helping it be that way. In the 21st century, we can no longer depend on words alone to get messages across, so the combination of the New Media and the written word is the way to go. Many of these rules may seem obvious when read here, but when put into action; they are rules that are much forgotten. Sticking to these guidelines and eventually branching off of them (because none of these rules are set in stone) can eventually advance the use of the written word even more. The New Media is nothing to be threatened by; rather it is something to be grateful for, as Zeltner is trying to get across.