TECHNLOGY has of course changed and will continue to change with consequences too difficult to grasp on distant horizons.

As the 30-year-old Independent becomes the first British national daily to wind up its print edition and go digital, its owner says journalism has “changed beyond recognition” and his newspaper “must change too”.

Launched in 1986 as a left-of-centre newspaper the Indy made an impact on Fleet Street, with its circulation soaring to 400,000. In the ’90s, however, it had to resort to staff cuts as circulation fell because of stiff competition, with several rival newspapers lowering their prices.

All over the world, newspapers have been adjusting to the challenge posed by the internet, with many dailies opting for both print and digital editions.

Some leading newspapers in America have either closed down or like The New York Times have been facing severe financial crises because of loss in revenues and falling circulations. Does all this mean ‘journalism’ has changed as claimed by the Indy’s owner?

Journalism has two basic functions: to report and mould public opinion. Technology effects change in the means of reaching out to the public, but the essence of journalism stays the same.

More important, the printed word has its own charm and hold on the mind, unlike TV news and talk shows where the impact is immediate — perhaps powerful but transient.

Many newspapers have closed down for other reasons, such as Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World, which fell victim to hacking and bribery scandals.

Besides, circulations in Latin America and countries like Japan, China and India continue to rise. In Pakistan, most of the major national dailies have both print and web editions, and even though TV has made a big dent in their revenues, there is little evidence of a fall in circulation.

The smartphone generation will adjust quickly to web editions, but those of the old generation will find their mornings hollow without the day’s newspaper folded and placed in all its glory on their breakfast table.

Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2016