In 1985 Madonna sang “we are living in a material world” and whilst the song has become immortalised, the sentiment however has not. Over the past 15 years we’ve gone online, with our smart phones and social networks, the material world has transformed into the digital world. But what does this mean for the media?

Kevin Anderson, The Guardian blogs editor, touched on this at a Meet the Media event this week. A strong advocate of social media, he believes the traditional print newspaper is dying.

It is no secret that the newspapers are struggling at the moment and these days people expect the news to come to them. Coupled with the credit crunch, people are opting for free online versions – why buy a newspaper when you have all the information at the click of a button for free? And does this mean the death of the humble newspaper?

I hope not. For me, the beauty of the newspaper lies with the experience. It’s not just printed paper, it represents so much more. Whether it’s the lazy Sunday morning, the daily fight over the sports section or just doing the cross word, these are things you simply don’t get with the online versions. The death of the newspaper would be a tragedy. Maybe we are living in a digital world, but I’m still a material girl.