Spielberg Maybe onto Something...

Before Tom Cruise was jumping on Oprah's couch, declaring his love for Katie Holmes, he was a fugitive of the law, laying low on a New York subway. Until, a "Breaking News" story flashes on a thin video screen of what seems to be a USA Today "E-Paper," and his cover is blown.

In the 2002 sci-fi flick Minority Report, Steven Speilberg depicts the replacement of printed text and still photos with the "E-Paper," in which content, video and sound are constantly updated on a mixed-media front page. In a 2005 Washington Post online discussion regarding the future of newspapers, Media & Entertainment Industry reporter Frank Ahrens suggests that we think of it [E-Paper] as a "combination paper, television and Internet, presumably wirelessly connected to a futuristic Wi-Fi, perhaps the next generation of the new Wi-Max super hotspots that are rolling out and cover several square miles instead of several square feet."

Even though Ahrens descibes Cruise's nail-biting subway "E-ride" as a throwaway scene, as our Online Journalism class strolled through the halls of the Miami Herald last week, I couldn't help but think that maybe Spielberg was intentionally commenting on the future of journalism itself. And, with mixed-media reporting increasing in popularity, maybe readers will be living that future sooner than we think.

During our Herald tour, Mixed-Media Managing Editor Rick Hirsch noted that news stories are published on miamiherald.com first, which-unlike its printed paper-have the ability to be updated continuously to attract wider audiences, and can later be polished by adding related links (i.e. video and audio content) and vivid photo galleries.

It was rather distressing to hear Hirsch say that, when it comes to news, there is "no longer loyalty to a brand." Hirch compared the web's homepage to the front page of a newspaper, and explained that if it is not updated throughout the day, readers will be left with no choice but to seek their news elsewhere.

Due to increasing competition to grab readers' attention, Hirsch says the Herald is seeking alternate ways to deliver news instantly and efficiently. One way is through sending complimentary text message alerts on breaking news, sports scores and even weather updates. This proved extremely helpful during the impending threat of Hurricane Ike.

Hirsch realized that there exists a "broader reach through the web," and that is why the Herald is beginning to create niche specialty sites, such as miami.com and miamimoms.com, in an effort to attract a varierty of interests and promote discussion.

So, even though the "E-Paper" may seem a little eerie, I wouldn't rule out the possibility of enjoying its eye-popping graphics and endless breaking news stories on the Metro in the near future...just as long as I don't have to sit next to Tom Cruise.