On Sunday, I bought a newspaper for the first time in over a year. Church had finished earlier than I thought and I was waiting for Homebase to open. The options were: go home and come back later, or have a coffee at Starbucks. I chose to have a coffee at Starbucks, and that is when I realised I had left my iPhone at home. No laptop, no iPhone, no internet. The cup of coffee lasted around 15 minutes, and then I started twiddling my thumbs. I thought I would sacrifice the £2.20 for a copy of The Observer, only discovered that it was on sale at the StarBuck’s discounted price of £1.
I usually read the news on the internet. The Guardian, usually, and then the New York Times. That is usually a ‘lean forward’ experience, as they say, because I scan the headlines and my reading is very focussed. Flicking through The Observer that morning was a different affair: I learnt that Marianne Faithful has a new album coming out, I discovered a Nick Slater recipe for spring greens and lemon soup and a photographic history of Europe. It was like a leisurely stroll through a garden of delights, instead of a shopping trip to ASDA for a dozen eggs.What is it about the printed medium that makes the experience so different? I had already read a feature on Jamie Bell that morning on the Guardian/Observer website, but the same text, presented as an illustrated spread over four pages was just more louche, more conversational. Comments welcome!
I find the same thing, and I guess it comes down to different types of articles. If it's news I want a no-nonsense type of approach which I find works best on RSS feeds, but for all other things I prefer a newspaper or magazine spread. Sometimes it's a word in an adjoining paragraph in a separate story that grabs you - sometimes it's the seeing that the article is only a small one that encourages me to read it. Nothing better than a leisurely breakfast with the papers.
ReplyDeleteI find the same thing, and I guess it comes down to different types of articles. If it's news I want a no-nonsense type of approach which I find works best on RSS feeds, but for all other things I prefer a newspaper or magazine spread. Sometimes it's a word in an adjoining paragraph in a separate story that grabs you - sometimes it's the seeing that the article is only a small one that encourages me to read it. Nothing better than a leisurely breakfast with the papers.
ReplyDelete