Do you dare shovelware? First, shovelware is when a publication puts the same content online that is in the printed version. This has happened quite a bit with several media publications while other have realized that there is an audience out there that reads both online and print version, which means there has to be some difference between the two. With the world of Online Journalism flourishing, do certain publication have the staff to create original content for the internet? The answer- not all of them do. Take for example Tampa Bay Illustrated Magazine, which is a niche magazine for the Tampa Bay Area. Their website is full of shovelware and, in an effort to get people to subscribe, they only post the first half of the stories. Plus, its obvious that the print pages were placed on the website. Clever, lazy or simply the only recourse? Shovelware is just one dilemma that Online Journalism has created. Although it allows people to check out a publication before subscribing, it does not give much to the audience that is already interested and simply wants more. At some point more will have to be given.
Check out Tampa Bay Illustrated shovelware on Fall Fashion
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I consider 'shovelware' sites essentially 'marketing for the print product.' The next step in the evolution is posting the content online first... but it's still the same content. Then we get the multimedia, online-only content; the interactivity; the stories that appear online but aren't important enough for print the next day. (Who cares about the traffic jam after the fact, unless something was damaged or someone killed?
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