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News Aggregators

News aggregators combine computer software and journalistic practices to enable online computer users to collect news stories and other information as that information is published and to organize the information in a specific, personalized manner. This is accomplished in several ways, but the most common is the use of HTML (hypertext mark-up language) coding on the websites of news-gathering organizations to create RSS (really simple syndication) feeds and other public notifications of instant updates to news content. News aggregators programs are installed on the computers of individual users. These programs regularly search for updated information from news-gathering organizations and compile it for later use. The term news aggregators can also refer to intermediate websites that republish RSS feeds and information from other primary news sources.

News aggregation is based on the concept of content syndication, where content created by one or more news-gathering organizations is distributed through a different organization. Historically, syndication involved republication of both hard and soft news content by newspapers in different locations. These newspapers paid the initial publishing source (often a metropolitan daily) for the limited right to reprint the stories. The nature of syndication has changed as technological advances allow far more information to travel much greater distances. Online journalism allows for more and different types of syndication, particularly the syndication of headlines and breaking news scoops. Most news aggregators are web based: they deliver RSS feeds and other content using web browsers. However, other aggregators use stand-alone software that connects to the Internet to deliver RSS feeds and other content. Well-known news aggregators include Google News and My Yahoo. Other news aggregators have been designed to display news feeds as scrolling screensavers or to send news feeds directly to an end user as a daily e-mail digest. (Due to the fluid nature of the World Wide Web, any listing of news aggregators would quickly become obsolete. Please refer to the more frequently updated websites in the Further Readings section.)

Syndication and the Evolution of Aggregators

While web-based news aggregators are a relatively recent phenomenon, they have their roots in news agency reports carried in local newspapers, which attempted to provide a local angle on stories for their readership. This practice developed into the familiar newspaper sections still in use today, such as the front page, editorial page, international section, sports section, and so on. In the late twentieth century, most major metropolitan daily newspapers began to publish zoned editions, which carried both the main sections of the newspaper, plus an added section (or sections) of news specific to a subregion within the metropolitan area. While this practice of audience segmentation was common in newspapers, it was less common in local broadcast journalism as there was no ready way to focus stories for only part of a region. Before the rise of online journalism and news gathering beginning in the 1990s, feature syndication had become a widely accepted news practice. Importantly, however, it was still practiced under the control of traditional news editors.

When newspapers began publishing on the Internet, they extended these practices into the online space: sections of printed newspapers usually became separate sections within the overall websites. Since online versions of newspapers required no printing and distribution costs, the number of local editions could be expanded, increasing geographic customization and demographic personalization. Stories could be expanded and more photos—or even video—provided. The rise of independent intermediate websites that collect and republish headlines and hyperlinks began to erode the impact of traditional news editors. The social and political effects of a 24-hour news cycle in journalism (begun with cable news services and greatly expanded online) began to create expectations that print and broadcast news editors should to provide near-constant updates and headlines.

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