It’s not enough to say the internet has changed the way we read. It is a constant process of change, and as writers, we need to be aware not just of the profound shifts in the way digital culture has changed our ways of reading, writing and processing information, but of the latest developments.
As WM prepares to go to press, a piece of long-form journalism has appeared in the Guardian that media and creative writing professionals are sharing widely on social media. In How Technology Disrupted the Truth (http://writ.rs/vinertech), Guardian editor-in-chief Katharine Viner addresses how social media and its closed communities have altered our relationship with facts and the impact of that on news journalism. She argues that as amassing attention and likes has become more important than presenting solid, trustworthy facts, the nature of what we regard as ‘news’ has altered. It’s a must-read piece for anyone interested in how digital culture is mutating the way we approach, and process, information.