What Is News? Galtung and Ruge revisited

This study aims to shed light on the news selection process by examining the news values currently operational in British newspapers. The study takes as its starting point Galtung and Ruge's widely cited taxonomy of news values established in their 1965 study and puts these criteria to the test in an empirical analysis of news published in three national daily UK newspapers. A review of Galtung and Ruge's original study as well as a wider review of related literature is provided. The findings of the news content analysis are used to evaluate critically Galtung and Ruge's original criteria and to propose a contemporary set of news values

Alternative Journalism as Monitorial Citizenship? A case study of a local news blog

Recent years have seen claims that some examples of online alternative journalism in the form of hyperlocal and local blogs are helping to address society’s “democratic deficit” by subjecting the actions of the powerful to increased public scrutiny, in a process that has been described as “monitorial citizenship”. To explore how this might work in practice, this study examines the origins, motivations and practices of one such site in the United Kingdom: the Leeds Citizen. The aim is to provide the sort of detailed consideration in depth that is almost by definition missing from wider surveys of the field. To this end, the case study is based on a series of interviews with the site’s creator, augmented by analysis of content, all discussed within the context of scholarly literature on how alternative, non-commercial forms of journalism operate in the digital age. The article concludes that this contemporary form of alternative journalism may indeed be described as an example of monitorial citizenship in action, but there is also a need for further research

What is news? News values revisited (again)

The deceptively simple question “What is news?” remains pertinent even as we ponder the future of journalism in the digital age. This article examines news values within mainstream journalism and considers the extent to which news values may be changing since earlier landmark studies were undertaken. Its starting point is Harcup and O’Neill’s widely-cited 2001 updating of Galtung and Ruge’s influential 1965 taxonomy of news values. Just as that study put Galtung and Ruge’s criteria to the test with an empirical content analysis of published news, this new study explores the extent to which Harcup and O’Neill’s revised list of news values remain relevant given the challenges (and opportunities) faced by journalism today, including the emergence of social media. A review of recent literature contextualises the findings of a fresh content analysis of news values within a range of UK media 15 years on from the last study. The article concludes by suggesting a revised and updated set of contemporary news values, whilst acknowledging that no taxonomy can ever explain everything

The re-birth of the "beat": A hyperlocal online newsgathering model

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in Journalism Practice, 6(5-6), 754 - 765, 2012, copyright Taylor & Francis, available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/17512786.2012.667279.Scholars have long lamented the death of the 'beat' in news journalism. Today's journalists generate more copy than they used to, a deluge of PR releases often keeping them in the office, and away from their communities. Consolidation in industry has dislodged some journalists from their local sources. Yet hyperlocal online activity is thriving if journalists have the time and inclination to engage with it. This paper proposes an exploratory, normative schema intended to help local journalists systematically map and monitor their own hyperlocal online communities and contacts, with the aim of re-establishing local news beats online as networks. This model is, in part, technologically-independent. It encompasses proactive and reactive news-gathering and forward planning approaches. A schema is proposed, developed upon suggested news-gathering frameworks from the literature. These experiences were distilled into an iterative, replicable schema for local journalism. This model was then used to map out two real-world 'beats' for local news-gathering. Journalists working within these local beats were invited to trial the models created. It is hoped that this research will empower journalists by improving their information auditing, and could help re-define journalists' relationship with their online audiences

Asking the readers: audience research into alternative journalism

Alternative forms of journalism are said to challenge the passive role of audience members as receivers and to foster active citizenship among alternative journalists and audiences. Yet the scholarly literature on alternative journalism contains more assertions about than evidence from the audience. Downing has described the audience for alternative media as “the virtually unknown”, prompting him to urge journalism scholars to undertake more audience research to help increase our understanding of this allegedly active and civic-minded public. This exploratory study of the people who regularly read a contemporary example of alternative journalism—an investigative local blog covering one UK city—is intended to contribute towards filling the gap identified by Downing. Audience views are explored by means of questionnaires and focus groups, providing some evidence that individuals are attracted to alternative journalism by their dissatisfaction with mainstream media; that they see alternative media as helping them make sense of the world; and that, to an extent, engaging with such media is both a prompt to, and a reflection of, readers’ democratic engagement as citizens. Recognising the limitations of this small study, the article concludes by reiterating Downing's call for further research

How the mass media report social statistics: A case study concerning research on end-of-life decisions

This is the post-print version of the final paper published in Social Science & Medicine. The published article is available from the link below. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. Copyright @ 2010 Elsevier B.V.The issue of whether it is right to be concerned about the accuracy with which mass media report social scientific research is explored through a detailed case study of media reporting of two surveys of UK doctors' end-of-life decision-making. Data include press releases, emails and field notes taken during periods of media interest supplemented by a collection of print and broadcast media reports. The case study contributes to existing knowledge about the ways in which mass media establish, exaggerate and otherwise distort the meaning of statistical findings. Journalists ignored findings that did not fit into existing media interest in the 'assisted dying' story and were subject to pressure from interest groups concerned to promote their own interpretations and viewpoints. Rogue statistics mutated as they were set loose from their original research report context and were 'laundered' as they passed from one media report to another. Yet media accounts of the research, fuelling an already heated public debate about ethical issues in end-of-life care, arguably acted as a conduit for introducing new considerations into this debate, such as the role played by sedation at the end of life, the extent to which euthanasia is practiced outside the law, and the extent of medical opposition to the legalisation of assisted dying. The expectation that accuracy and comprehensiveness should be the sole criteria for judging journalists' reports is, finally, considered to be unrealistic and it is argued that social scientists need to understand and adapted to the conditions under which mass media reporting operates if they are to succeed in introducing the findings of social research into public debates.The Nuffield Foundation, the National Council for Palliative Care, Age Concern, the Motor Neurone Disease Association, the Multiple Sclerosis Society, Help the Hospices, Macmillan Cancer Support, and Sue Ryder Care

The Passive Journalist: How sources dominate the local news

This study explores which sources are “making” local news and whether these sources are simply indicating the type of news that appears, or are shaping newspaper coverage. It provides an empirical record of the extent to which sources are able to dominate news coverage from which future trends in local journalism can be measured. The type and number of sources used in 2979 sampled news stories in four West Yorkshire papers, representing the three main proprietors of local newspapers in the United Kingdom, were recorded for one month and revealed the relatively narrow range of routine sources; 76 per cent of articles cited only a single source. The analysis indicates that journalists are relying less on their readers for news, and that stories of little consequence are being elevated to significant positions, or are filling news pages at the expense of more important stories. Additionally, the reliance on a single source means that alternative views and perspectives relevant to the readership are being overlooked. Journalists are becoming more passive, mere processors of one-sided information or bland copy dictated by sources. These trends indicate poor journalistic standards and may be exacerbating declining local newspaper sales

A Case Study on Leadership and Digital Media Strategy for Prolonged Absences

The COVID-19 pandemic created difficulties for the Western Church to meet together as it had normally done for generations. The question that arises is, “How is the church to continue its mission of reaching people with the Gospel and make disciples that make disciples when it is not able to gather together in the same manner as before?” This project will seek to determine the best strategies and tools that the modern Western Church can use to fulfill its mission through an online digital media strategy during these prolonged absences. A case study of Bedrock Church Sarasota and the strategies that were implemented because of the global pandemic will be conducted to determine the best practices used to reach people with the Gospel and make disciples during periods of prolonged absences

'News with a kick': a model of oppositional reporting

This article explores uses of reporting techniques by de facto journalists operating within alternative media, paying particular attention to the extent to which those who tend to be marginalised by mainstream journalism may be heard via alternative journalism. The article is based on an empirical study of an online provider of alternative local news operating in a UK city. Reflecting on conceptualisations of alternative journalism (Forde, 2011; Atton, 2002), the article proposes a model of 'oppositional' reporting that combines pragmatic use of journalistic skills with an ideological critique of the hegemonic discourses of powerful social groupings and mainstream media alike. Such oppositional reporting speaks up for the powerless and, at times, allows the powerless to speak directly for themselves

Extending our gaze beyond the mainstream: studies of alternative journalism, 2003-2016

The thesis comprises a series of nine studies that were all published in peer-reviewed journals or books between 2003 and 2016, accompanied and contextualised by a commentary setting out the coherence and significance of the research when viewed as a whole. This work is concerned with exploration of alternative media in general, and alternative journalism in particular. The submitted publications comprise separate studies that are linked thematically and point to the following conclusions: alternative journalism is not necessarily a failed project just because audiences tend to be small and the lifetime of any particular project tends to be short; there can be said to be a continuum of journalistic practice involving both mainstream and alternative media; and the reporting practices and ethical commitment found within alternative journalism can be seen as an expression of active citizenship. Taken together, the studies gathered in the submission make an original contribution to scholarship in the fields of alternative media and alternative journalism; in the process, they have much to say about journalism as a whole. As an original contribution to scholarship over a sustained period of enquiry, the thesis represents a substantial addition to our knowledge