The growth of so-called hyperlocal media has created new challenges for research, blurring some of the classic boundaries of local journalism and traditional media. In this chapter we try to understand the role hyperlocal media have in the local media ecosystem by focusing on two European countries: Spain and the Netherlands. We present the methodology applied for the study of hyperlocal media in both cases, adapted to their geographical, social and media context. We identify the main characteristics of hyperlocal media in both countries, observing their distribution in the territory, organizational and productive structures, news content and citizen participation. Finally, we propose some keys for the comparative study of hyperlocal media.
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Globalization was supposed to connect people, but instead ended up connecting the powerful. Local news is rapidly disappearing and leaving crucial stories unreported, communities unrepresented and disconnected, a side-effect of digitalization and the ownership concentration in media markets. But local and hyperlocal media play an important role in sustaining robust and resilient regimes of public service. In an age of technological changes and political pressure, niche publications and a renaissance of zines lead the quest for new, sustainable models in publishing.In the second instalment of the special edition Eurozine podcast series, produced by Talk Eastern Europe, Eurozine editor-in-chief Réka Kinga Papp talks media models old and new with Rachael Jolley, editor of Index on Censorship and philosopher Miriam Rasch of the Institute of Network Cultures.
MULTIFILE
Although basic features of journalism have remained the same over the last decades, the tasks journalists perform, the skills they need and the position they have within news organizations have changed dramatically. Usually the focus in the discourse on changes in journalism is on skills, especially on technical multi-media skills or research skills. In this paper we focus on changes in professional roles of journalists, arguing that these roles have changed fundamentally, leading to a new generation of journalists. We distinguish between different trends in journalism. Journalism has become more technical, ranging from editing video to programming. At the same time, many journalists are now more ‘harvesters’ and ‘managers’ of information and news instead of producers of news. Thirdly, journalists are expected to gather information from citizens and social media, and edit and moderate user-contributions as well. Lastly, many journalists are no longer employed by media but work as freelancers or independent entrepreneurs. We track these trends and provide a detailed description of developments with examples from job descriptions in the Netherlands.
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