The evolution of the Internet and media

Dave Kansas, the president of personal finance Web site FiLife and a former editor at TheStreet.com and The Wall Street Journal, talked earlier this week in Montana about how the Internet has changed journalism.

Dillon Tabish of New West wrote, “When Kansas was launching TheStreet.com a little more than 10 years ago, it was a time he called the ‘dark ages’ of the Internet.

“‘It was a really scary and exhilarating time back then,’ he said, remembering when no one at The Wall Street Journal had email addresses and there was a single computer in the corner of the newsroom with Internet access. Then, everyone thought ‘only bad things came from the Internet,’ he said.

“Of course, things have changed.

“‘We’ve entered another leg of the Internet revolution today,’ said Kansas, currently leading a Dow Jones and InterActive Corp. joint venture called FiLife, a personal finance site geared toward young people to be fully launched in May.

“One of the keys to online innovation is ever-increasing bandwidth, which is allowing for smoother Internet access, video integration and increased file sharing. It’s sent the music industry into a tailspin, Kansas said, and the film industry isn’t far behind. It’s indicative of how the Internet is forcing entrenched industries to rethink how they do business and distribute their products.”

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