CMA Digital Survey

Online trends in college student media Presented March 18, 2006 Spring National College Media Convention • New York City Chris Carroll, Vanderbilt University

To obtain a clearer picture of the evolution of college student media in the digital age and assess advisers’ opinions on the future of that media, a nationwide survey was conducted in March 2006. Advisers were identified using the College Media Advisers member database and the CMA listserv. Each member was sent an email invitation to participate in the web-based survey. Here is a summary of the results:

Survey sample

Survey participants included 253 advisers representing 233 colleges and universities in 42 states, the District of Columbia and two Canadian provinces, with enrollments ranging from 600 to 52,000. The types of schools represented were:

Current practices

What student media on your campus deliver content via a web site?

Are there student media at your school that are published exclusively online?

Do two or more student media at your school share a common web site?

How long has your student media had an online presence?

Which of these student media have student staff members whose sole responsibility is to produce content for online use? * Respondents specified “Other” as exclusively online media

How frequently does the student staff for your school’s newspaper update content for its web site?

Which of the following web-based features are provided on ANY of your student media web sites?

Do any of your student media web sites include local advertising sold by campus representatives?

Where are your student media web sites hosted?

Advisers’ opinions

Our student media web site provides content beyond that found in the printed edition:

Our student media web site is a useful tool to train students in new media technologies:

With respect to changes in worldwide media, readership trends and advancements in technology, would you say that college student media:

How would you rate your level of concern over college media’s ability to transition to the new digital media age?

I believe that primary content delivery for student media will shift from printed publications to online sites:

Newspaper format/frequency

What is the print format for your student newspaper?

For broadsheet advisers only: Do you anticipate a change in format to tabloid or tall tabloid size within the next two years?

How frequently is your student newspaper printed?

Advisers’ working environments

The reporting structure for my advising position is most closely aligned with:

Advising student media represents: 242 participants answered “How many advisers work with student media at your school?” Based upon those responses, the average number of advisers working per school is three (73 respondents indicated they were the only adviser at their school).

Preliminary conclusions

Student newspapers are failing to embrace the immediacy advantage of online publishing

91.3 percent of college newspapers are online;

63 percent of the printed editions of college papers are published weekly or less frequently;

69.4 percent of the papers have staff dedicated exclusively to producing online content;

76 percent of college newspapers update online content no more frequently than their companion printed editions are published — for most this means updates no more frequently than once each week.

Student media are slow to embrace the technological advances offered online

A slight majority, 51 percent, of student media operations have been online for more than five years, however, fewer than 25 percent of all sites include web native technologies such as RSS feeds, podcasts, weblogs, flash applications, or video.

Convergence remains in its infancy with only 11 percent of advisers reporting web sites shared by two or more media. Exclusively online media are also rare with only 15 percent of advisers reporting examples.

Advertising and technology markets serving student media online are largely untapped

A majority of advisers, 66 percent, report no campus initiated efforts to sell online advertising, leaving this market untouched or deferred to third party vendors.

A majority of college media web sites, 58 percent, are hosted on campus-owned servers. This may represent a market for standardized content management software designed specifically for college student media.

Advisers recognize the challenge ahead and the need for urgent action

63 percent of advisers believe the transition of student media to “new media” is a Top 5 priority;

58 percent of advisers believe student media is lagging behind commercial media in this transition;

57 percent of advisers believe the primary content delivery system for student media will be web sites within the next 10 years.

Additional noteworthy data

Web sites identified by survey respondents as being shared by two or more student media (converged)

http://chronicle.dcccd.edu

http://graphic.pepperdine.edu

http://homepages.ius.edu/Horizon/

http://newsnet.byu.edu

http://wcvm.morrisville.edu

http://xpress.sfsu.edu

www.bca.cmich.edu

www.brenau.edu/masscomm

www.cod.edu/courier

www.crusadermedia.com

www.ferris.edu

www.hcworldnews.com

www.nineronline.com

www.northernstar.info

www.oudaily.com

www.statepress.com

www.stp.georgiasouthern.edu

www.studentmedia.colostate.edu

www.thedmonline.com

www.theranger.org

www.yaledailynews.com

Abilene Christian University Albany State University, Georgia Alfred University Amarillo College Appalachian State University Arizona State University Arkansas State University Auburn University Austin Peay State University Blinn College Bloomsburg University Boise State University Bowling Green State University Brenau University Brigham Young University Brigham Young University-Idaho Bucknell University Butler University Cabrini College Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo Campbell University Capital University Carson-Newman College Cayuga Community College Central Michigan University Chattanooga State Tech Comm College Clark College Clemson University Coastal Carolina University College of DuPage College of Southern Maryland Colorado State University Colorado State University-Pueblo Columbia College Columbia College Chicago County College of Morris Cowley County Community College Doane College East Carolina University East Tennessee State University Eastern Illinois University Eastern Kentucky University Edmonds Community College El Camino College Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Emory University Emporia State University Evangel University Fairfield University Ferris State University Ferrum College Florida A&M University Florida State University Fordham College at Lincoln Center Fulton Montgomery Community College Garden City Community College George Washington University Georgia College & State University Georgia Highlands College Georgia Institute of Technology Georgia Southern University Grambling State University Grand Valley State University Hastings College Henderson State University Hillsdale College Hobart & William Smith Colleges Hood College Houston Baptist University Howard University Illinois State University Indiana State University Indiana University at Bloomington Indiana University Southeast Iowa State University Ithaca College Jackson State University Jacksonville State University Jamestown College John Carroll University Johnson County Community College Kean University Kennesaw State University La Salle University Lakeland College Lake-Sumter Community College Le Moyne College Lehigh University Liberty University Lindsey Wilson College Linfield College Louisiana State University Loyola Marymount University Marquette University Marshall University Menlo College Mercyhurst College Miami University Milligan College MiraCosta College Mississippi State University Missouri State University Monroe Community College Monroe County Community College Morrisville State College Mount Royal College Murray State University Nassau Community College New Mexico State University Nicholls State University North Carolina State University North Greenville University North Idaho College North Iowa Area Com. College Northeastern State University Northern Illinois University Northern Kentucky University Northwestern State University Norwich University Oakton Community College Ocean County College Ohio University Ohio Wesleyan University Olivet College Oregon State University Penn State University Pennsylvania College of Technology Pensacola Junior College Pepperdine University Plattsburgh SUNY Point Park University Portland State University, Oregon Providence College Purdue University Radford University Rhodes College Rice University Richland College Robert Morris College Roger Williams University Rollins College Roosevelt University Rowan University Samford University San Antonio College San Francisco State University School of the Art Institute of Chicago Seton Hall University Simpson College Slippery Rock University South Dakota State University Southern Illinois University Carbondale Southern Methdodist University Southern Nazarene University Southern University - Baton Rouge St. Francis College St. Louis Community College, Forest Park SUNY Brockport Tallahassee Community College Tarrant County College Taylor University Temple University Tennessee State University Texas A&M University Texas Christian University Texas Tech University The School of the Art Institute of Chicago Tidewater Community College Trinity University Trinity Western University Tri-State University Truman State University Tulane University University of Colorado at Boulder University of Alabama University of Alabama at Birmingham University of Alaska Anchorage University of Arizona University of Arkansas University of California - Berkeley University of Connecticut University of Dayton University of Evansville University of Georgia University of Hawaii at Manoa University of Idaho University of Louisiana at Monroe University of Maryland University of Memphis University of Minnesota University of Minnesota Duluth University of Mississippi University of Nebraska-Lincoln University Of Nevada, Reno University of New Mexico Gallup University of North Alabama University of North Carolina Charlotte University of North Carolina Chapel Hill University of North Carolina Wilmington University of North Texas University of Northern Colorado University of Oklahoma University of Pennsylvania University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma University of South Carolina University of South Florida University of Southern Indiana University of Southern Mississippi University of Tennessee University of Texas at Arlington University of Texas at Austin University of Texas at Dallas University of Wisconsin-Stout Valdosta State University Valencia Community College Vanderbilt University Vanguard University Villa Julie College Virginia Tech University Volunteer State Community College Walters State Community College Washtenaw Community College Wayne State University Webster University West Virginia University Western Kentucky University Western Oregon University Widener University Wilkes University William Marsh Rice University William Paterson University Wright State University Yale University List of Schools Represented In survey

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