Abstract
This paper reviews diffusion of on-line research at daily newspapers in the USA during a five-year period from 1994 to 1998. Diffusion literature indicates new technical innovations require certain social and economic conditions and other factors before adoption begins. Once the adoption process begins, it takes place in stages before reaching critical mass. Data collected in this study confirms Everett M. Rogers' process model. The World Wide Web has become the dominant on-line research tool for journalists. Commercial services that provide access to government databases and archival databases, such as those containing newspapers and magazines, are also in wide use. While general computer use in newsrooms has increased, so has the frequency of use of on-line services. Primary resources used to search the web are AltaVista and Yahoo! and journalists most often used government sites. Internet technologies were not widely used during the five years studied. Adoption of computers and the internet- web appear complete, but the adoption process in some advanced-use categories remains in process.
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