Media Technologies of Attracting the Audience’s Attention on the Internet: Preserving Traditional Media’s Value Priorities

The modern sphere of media communications is characterized by significant Internet human involvement. Network (new) media – blogs, social networks, video platforms, aggregators and other online media, created exclusively for the network – have an advantage over traditional media, forced to compete for the attention of users in an alien environment. The modern online media text consisting of verbal and nonverbal components is mostly focused on attracting the attention of the audience, influencing its feelings and receiving certain emotions. These purposes, especially in the environment of the new media, are often achieved by unscrupulous means, such as the presentation of material in a “yellow” tone, the abuse of emotional audio-video content, the publication of false information, etc., going against the traditional values of journalism. However, the preservation of the traditional axiological component is an extremely important issue for journalism. Regional print media find themselves in a more losing position due to limited resources. However, the potential of publications, especially located in Russian million-plus cities, is quite high. By developing their websites, they can become solid players in regional media markets, and at the same time preserve their axiological potential, continuing to be conductors of the traditions of the cultural code of society. The purpose of this study was to analyze the current place of traditional print media on the Internet with an emphasis on the axiological aspect. The article presents the results obtained by the method of comparative content analysis of materials posted on official websites of newspapers of Privolzhsky Federal District’s million-plus cities during the pandemic (March-May 2020) and in the same period of 2019. Changes of sites during the specified time periods are also analyzed. The novelty of this research is the field of research – till now, the content of websites of newspapers of million-plus cities in the context of using modern tools increasing their attracting for users has not been studied. The study displays increase in the number of tools traditionally used by digital media (such as attractive clickbate titles, audiovisual content and interactive methods of interaction with users) on newspapers’ websites during the pandemic. However, the frequency of the use of these tools is quite small, which allows us to conclude that the value humanitarian potential of publications is preserved even in digital format. The wider use of audience-attracting technologies is vital for print newspapers, as it guarantees them recognition and the possibility of surviving in the face of fierce competition in the Internet environment. But at the same time, it is important to pay attention to the preservation of value priorities. Editors are aware of this importance and do not change the nature of the content, maintaining the image and justifying the trust of readers. In the future, it seems significant to use the methods and means of new media listed in the study on traditional media sites, as well as to establish the dependence of the audience reaction to these actions.