The term “legacy media” means the “old media” or the “print media” (newspapers and magazines), as opposed to the “new media” (websites and blogs). The term “legacy media” was enlarged to include more of the “old media” quickly becoming a legacy, such as the radio and television broadcast networks in the mainstream media.
   
“Legacy media” has been used since at least 1998. Many conservatives claim that the “legacy media” have a liberal bias and are slow to report their stories. Similar terms for “legacy media’ include “antique media,” “deadstream media,” “dead tree media,” “dinosaur media,”  “fringe media,” “lamestream media,” “past tense media” and “vintage media.”
   
   
NetLingo
legacy media
Media that is considered “old,” such as radio, television, and especially newspapers. With legacy media, the receiver does not contribute or interact with the content and remains totally passive.
 
Legacy media is also slang for Web sites that use outdated technology or presentation styles (as in brochureware). It’s the opposite of new media.
 
Urban Dictionary
legacy media
n. Primarily mature newspaper and television news outlets that believe they are the final word on any topic. These news organizations fail to acknowledge newly formed news sources and don’t seem to understand that when they leave out information or emphasize the aspects of a story that aren’t really helpful or pertinent, that they will be found out by those who understand the situation and have access to multiple news sources.
 
Typically these legacy news sources can identified as the major broadcast television networks and major national newspapers that have been in existence long before there was cable television.
 
The legacy media outlets were all abuzz as they reported six original documents critical of President Bush’s national guard service and continued to report the documents as authentic even as they were proved to be fakes.
by ilmotore Oct 22, 2008
   
15 January 1998, Hartford (CT) Courant, “Pixels” by Kevin Hunt, ENTER section, pg. F1:
LEGACY MEDIA—The traditional media, such as radio and television, but particularly newspapers. Term can describe Web sites that conform to traditional newspaper standards.
 
useit.com
Jakob Nielsen’s Alertbox for August 23, 1998:
The End of Legacy Media
(Newspapers, Magazines, Books, TV Networks)
Most current media formats will die and be replaced with an integrated Web medium in five to ten years.
 
Legacy media cannot survive because the current media landscape is an artifact of the underlying hardware technology. Whenever the user experience is dictated by hardware limitations, it is a sure bet that something better will come along once these limitations are lifted.
   
The Weekly Standard
A Unified Theory of the Old Media Collapse
Asymmetrical tolerance and the collapse of Big Media credibility: How 2004 brought doom to legacy media.
by Hugh Hewitt
12/28/2004 8:30:00 PM
IF OLD MEDIA—the “legacy media” of the big papers and old networks plus the newsweeklies—was a city and not simply a set of gasping institutions, it would look like Stalingrad circa 1944. Parts of most of the virtual buildings are still standing, but the devastation is pretty complete.
     
Urban Dictionary
legacy media
n. Primarily mature newspaper and television news outlets that believe they are the final word on any topic. These news organizations fail to acknowledge newly formed news sources and don’t seem to understand that when they leave out information or emphasize the aspects of a story that aren’t really helpful or pertinent, that they will be found out by those who understand the situation and have access to multiple news sources.
 
Typically these legacy news sources can identified as the major broadcast television networks and major national newspapers that have been in existence long before there was cable television.
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by imotore October 22, 2008
 
Urban Dictionary
Legacy Media
“Legacy media” is politi-speak that political conservatives use to identify long-standing (“mature”) media outlets (such as the TV news networks - ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, etc., and the major print news services - New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times., etc.) Typically, these ostensibly “left-wing” news outlets are critical of conservative political agendas. Why the conservative wordsmiths use “legacy media” instead of “liberal media” is a mystery. Perhaps they feel that the term “liberal media” has been kicked around too long and needs replacement.
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by Don Casual February 22, 2018