New Media and the Reconfiguration of the Television Sphere. The Media Construction of the Active Public

Abstract

The study analyzes the influence of new media on the television sphere, namely the way in which news and talk shows integrate the forums, text messages, images captured using the mobile phone, blogs, etc. As such, the study takes into account a specific phenomenon: the broadcasters' tendency to mobilize the public to provide journalistic material and "evidence' captured using mobile technology. Therefore, how does television build the image of a so-called active public? And how are the journalist's role and the idea of journalistic source redefined in this context? By using the discourse analysis method, the study emphasizes the particularities of the show "Martor ocular" (Eyewitness) (broadcast on a major Romanian news outlet) where the public acquires multiple roles, being at the same time journalistic source, co-author of the information, witness and the citizen-who-questions-decision-makers. One of the conclusions of the study is that the use in televised shows of materials provided by viewers does not necessarily contribute to the formation of a deliberative public. "Raw" images captured by the eyewitness-viewer are integrated by the media in a rulemaking discourse on the role of the journalist and of mass-media