Brain Game: If you could invent a new form of print media, what would it be and why?
- Each week, our readers vote for their favourite answer and the contestant with the least votes is eliminated
- This week, they talk about how they would bring people the news via a new form of print
How can you spread news to the masses via a new form of print media?Contestant 1
The biggest problem with newspapers and magazines is the wastage of paper. Millions of newspapers are printed every day, with most of them thrown away after just one read. Therefore I’m proposing news napkins and toilet paper.
Each week, subscribers would receive their news stories printed on napkins and toilet paper. After reading, they can use the product before throwing it away.
Think about it: how many times were you bored while eating or using the toilet? Instead of scrolling through your phone, you could entertain yourself with educational news stories. There would also be child-friendly editions to get kids to learn about current events – without them even realising!
Contestant 2
I would find a way to persuade shops to give customers white paper bags to carry their products.
The news would be printed on those bags but I would make sure the shop’s logo was not covered.
Paper bags are much more eco-friendly than plastic bags. For example, it takes 20 years for a plastic bag to decompose while a paper bag breaks down in just one month.
What’s more, when people carrying those bags board a bus or train, other passengers will be able to read the news – for free!
Contestant 3
News printed on a packet of bread. The traditional printed media are thick, we don’t feel like carrying them all the way to the office or school but we still love reading them in the MTR. So, if that really happens, we can get a ‘newspaper’ and a meal at the same time.
The news doesn’t have to cover all the things that happened. It only needs to briefly cover some topics that give us an overall concept of what is happening around us.
We also knew that the bread is freshly made on that day as the packaging cannot be changed once it is packed.
Contestant 4
I’d create a product for visually impaired people. There aren’t many print resources to keep them up to date on the news.
There have been attempts to create “Braille newspapers”, but instead I’d print smaller publications, filled with summaries of the current news situation.
There would also be a joke page, which readers could contribute to.
Even the possibility of giving the visually impaired quick access to current issues is exciting, as it would be a step towards equality.
Contestant 5
We know that print media is able to create an everlasting image in the minds of viewers. I would use this opportunity to remind people how the environment is threatened by human actions.
I would create a postal service that sends out newsletters on this topic to people around the world.
Having this knowledge isn’t just enough, we need to physically take action. This is why the newsletter would also include information on charities that could benefit from our help.
By slightly changing individuals’ lives, we could have a much larger impact overall.