Diffusion of Innovations

The diffusion of innovations theory, developed by Everett Rogers in 1962, describes the speed and pattern of how new ideas, products, and practices spread throughout our society. This theory involves six groups: pioneers, early adopters, early majority, tipping point, late majority, and laggards. By understanding this theory, we can gain insight into the emergence of innovations, such as the first newspaper. 

Diffusion of Innovation Model

For starters, the modern newspaper was a European invention. Its early pioneers involved several individuals during the 17th century however the first pioneer was Johann Carolus who wrote the very first newspaper "Account of All Distinguished and Commemorative News" in 1605 in Strasbourg France. As the author of the first newspaper, Carolus took significant risks however his courage sparked a movement that would become a cornerstone for the diffusion of information. 

Following Caroulus, many early adaptors, primarily city residents interested in politics, began publishing newspapers. These individuals who wrote and read newspapers played a crucial role in embedding newspapers into our society. This allowed for communication beyond the current word-of-mouth sources.

As newspapers gained traction, the early majority began engaging with it establishing newspapers as an everyday read. They contributed to normalizing newspapers as reliable sources of information and allowed for continued growth.

In the 1950s, newspapers faced a tipping point due to the emergence of televisions. Individuals viewed the television as a new exciting medium for news shifting their attention away from newspapers. Later on in the 1990s, the rise of the internet allowed for an incredible amount of media options also contributing to the decline in individuals reading newspapers due to quicker and easier media platforms.

Despite this decline, newspapers stayed relevant among the late majority who still read print editions of the paper or access it online. These individuals value reading the paper as a part of their daily routine and some of them still get newspapers delivered to their homes.

Then there are laggards who don't necessarily care about being up to date on the newest technology. However, they eventually end up using the technology due to it becoming such a common presence in society. While newspapers aren't used as much today as they were in the past, mostly everyone has read a newspaper at some point in their lives or will end up inevitably as it is a very common source of news and information.

Overall, the newspaper was an invention that transformed our means of communication and obtaining communication. Although they are now published online in addition to paper copies of the newspaper, they are still regularly being read. We are very fortunate to live in a time when the emergence of the newspaper continues to shape our access to information as prior to the invention there was little to no spread of information. Although some inventions resulted in the tipping point of the newspaper it overall led a foundation for the current sources of information we have the luxury of utilizing today.