Today's Broadband, High Speed Journalist

re and more print newspapers make the jump todownload and upload speeds are equal and for
going online with the Internet, the importance ofnewsrooms, the upload is what matters most.
being the first with the news can all depend onWith most other Internet connections, the
the speed of the Internet connection.downloads always far exceed the uploads in
Many major media outlets have recognized thatterms of speed.
the next step to providing news to readers in aFor journalists working out in the field, a high
rush is by making it more readily available on thespeed Internet connection is the only way to file
Internet. However, for journalists, filing to thestories. A Wi-Fi enabled laptop or PDA can
Internet has added more pressure to being theconnect to the Internet as long as it is within
first with the news because they don’trange of a wireless network which is connected
have to wait for the next day to bring stories toto the Internet. The coverage of one or more
the public, which was the case in the ‘oldinternconnected access points, more commonly
days’.known as hot spots, can make the Internet
Journalists no longer file stories and photos at theaccessible almost anywhere. This way,
end of the day like they used to. In order tocorrespondence between what’s
keep up with the demand of their readers andhappening on the field and what needs to get to
watchers, they have to now file stories, photosthe newsroom can happen much faster than
and recently, video to the Internet multiple timesphysically driving the material back. It also beats
throughout the day in order to satiate the hungermaking the phone call to voice over the story,
for visuals. This is why it is imperative to have awhich can interrupt clarity when there’s a
high speed Internet connection – and onelot of commotion going on at the news scene.
that can handle the bandwidth necessary for allThere are also the recent options of mobile
that uploading.wireless Internet services which are increasing in
A high speed broadband Internet connection, suchpopularity, especially with the introduction of
as an asymmetrical digital subscriber linesmart phones, such as the Iphone or the
(otherwise known as ADSL), which allowsBlackberry. Wherever the cell phone works, the
download speeds of up to about 1.5 megabits perInternet can be accessible.
second and upload speeds of 128 kilobits perWith all the technology available to journalists
seconds can come in handy when uploading largetoday the competition has become more and
photos or videos, especially at frequent intervalsmore fierce as media outlets compete to be the
and from many machines in the office.first to post to the Web. High speed Internet
There is also a Symmetric Digital Subscriber Linemakes a journalist’s job easier, and the
(SDSL) which is similar to ADSL, but allows datapublic greatly benefits by getting their news
transfer speeds of 384 Kilobits per second in both– fast.
directions. The great thing about SDSL is that