What is new media?

New media. A word that has become quite common in the 21st century, but what may you ask is considered new media? New media, for the most part, is internet-based. In fact, without the internet, most of the following companies would not exist. Companies, such as, Facebook, My Space, Twitter, Shutterfly and Blogger.com, are examples of new media.

New media has definitely changed the way the world works. It is now possible for companies to exchange important documents with the click of a button, or for families to instantly share photographs with each other no matter how far away they are. The down side to all this is that companies such as the post office and photograph development stores suffer as people no longer rely on their services to provide letters or photographs when they can easily send e-mails, instant message or print their pictures from home because now they have a reliable but inexpensive printer. Bars and restaurants also suffer since people no longer seem to socialize outside of their homes. Instead they prefer to sit in front of a computer screen and chat with virtual unknowns disclosing personal things they normally would not do in public or face to face.

Our world is indeed becoming a sad place where people no longer feel the need to go outside their homes to have actual physical contact. Could this be one of the reasons for the growing obesity problem especially amongst teenage kids?!?!? Or the possibility that people prefer a computer over a human beinng??? What do you make of this?

As Joyce Hanson wrote on Crainsnewyork.com, the old media such as news papers and the music industry are being hit hard as new media takes over. It can only be a matter of time until things that we take for granted will suddenly become obsolete. What are some of the things you see already that is becoming obsolete?