*The Integrated Newsroom - Acknowledgements*

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- Acknowledgments -

"If you aren't living life on the edgeÉ
then you are taking up too much space."

- anonymous

In keeping to academic writing style convention, the opportunity to begin this acknowledgment with the above quote, was one simply too tempting to pass. 0f the numerous books, journals and texts that I have read to write this thesis, these words simply stuck to mind. Not that it has anything to do with the Internet, technology or online newspapers, it is I feel, the modus operandi or curse of being a journalist. Any individual who knows me, or has worked with me will pledge that I frequently live up to these words. I am however, unsure if this will ever change É

Producing a work such as this, is rarely ever an individual effort and one convention I would like to break is to be informal and personal in this short 400 wordspace of fame I have. I would like to thank a number of individuals who have been instrumental in giving me this opportunity to face this challenge; my family especially my parents, sisters Parin Humayun, Shaida and Masooma Keshvani, and brother Nazir for feeding me with the latest technology. Without their unwavering support I would not have embarked on this journey.

I am indebted to my supervisor, Sharon Tickle for her confidence in me and for being a gem of a friend, mentor and guide all rolled into one. I am also grateful to her, Cratis Hippocrates and Stuart Cunningham for encouraging me to pursue my studies and creating this opportunity for me. I thank my associate supervisors, Stephen Quinn and Paul Brown for their guidance and patience and David Birch, Peter Schembri, Angela Romano, Terry Flew, Lee Duffield, Michael Keane, Leo Bowman, Mark Hayes, and Cathy Jenkins for their valuable feedback.

During my research study, I had the opportunity to meet various industry practitioners, educators, researchers and technology leaders in Australia and Singapore who were generous with their knowledge. The Age Online's Alan Morison, John McDonald, Dan Fahy and The Straits Times' Paul Jansen, Koh Su Haw, Margaret Thomas, Raoul Le Blond and J. Rajendran were exceptionally helpful even after my stint with their organisation.

This would not be complete without thanking special friends who urged me on especially during the final stages Ð Simon Quah, Eva Sim, Grace Tan, Timothy Ang, Jinna Tay, Jason Chua, Lin Weide, Sharon Teo, Dan Newman (my sole MA buddy) and finally my guide to Australian culture Julie Jansen who kindly proofread this thesis in the shortest possible time.