Public media's contributions to democracy are well established. Less widely known are the specifi... more Public media's contributions to democracy are well established. Less widely known are the specific policies that make these contributions possible. This study finds that professional autonomy and civic accountability in public media are supported by (1) funding established for multiyear periods; (2) legal charters that restrict partisan government influence while also mandating the provision of diverse, high-quality programming; (3) oversight agencies, whose " arm's length " independence from the government in power is bolstered through staggered terms and the dispersal of authority to make appointments; and (4) audience councils and surveys designed to strengthen links to diverse publics. Public media governed by policies that continue and extend, rather than depart from, these best practices will likely be the most successful in maintaining their civic mission online.
Journal of Human Rights ISSN: 1475-4835 (Print) 1475-4843 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.t... more Journal of Human Rights ISSN: 1475-4835 (Print) 1475-4843 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cjhr20
This article examines the differential formation of online news startups in Toulouse, France, and... more This article examines the differential formation of online news startups in Toulouse, France, and Seattle, United States. While Seattle is home to many startups, in Toulouse there have been just 4—and only 1 continues publishing. Drawing on Bourdieu's field theory, we argue that amount and types of capital held by journalists in the 2 cities varied as a result of differences in journalism's position in the field of power. These differences shaped the extent of startup formation in each city and structured journalists' capacities to convert their capital into the resources needed to form startups (e.g., funding, credentials, partnerships). These findings are positioned in relation to literatures on journalism innovation and comparative media.
The purpose of this article is to overview the communication strategies that NGOs pursue and to s... more The purpose of this article is to overview the communication strategies that NGOs pursue and to situate these strategies within broader debates about the role of advocacy groups in politics. To do so, it reviews scholarship from a number of fields—including communication, political science, international relations, and sociology—in order to examine the ways these groups communicate, the various influences that shape these efforts, the degree to which they are successful in achieving their objectives, and the effects of their efforts on activism and media, respectively.
Previous research finds that nongovernmental organization (NGO) publicity strategies—despite digi... more Previous research finds that nongovernmental organization (NGO) publicity strategies—despite digital technologies—continue to focus heavily on garnering coverage in the mainstream news media. Drawing on theories of path dependence and interviews with NGO professionals, this paper identifies three factors that explain why this should be so. First, donors continue to value media coverage as a platform to learn about advocacy groups, as well as a mechanism for measuring their impact on political discourse. Second, political officials still value media coverage as a way to learn about advocacy demands. Third, NGOs occupy a position that is socially proximate to journalism, which leads the former to see the latter as an ally in the pursuit of publicity. Together, these factors confirm and extend the new institutional concept of " path dependence " by demonstrating how path dependence in one field (philanthropy, politics) can reinforce path dependence in another (NGO). These " reinforcing path dependencies " in turn interact with established mechanisms of institutional production (start-up costs, feedback effects, knowledge accumulation) to explain why NGOs continue to persist in media-centered publicity strategies despite new technological possibilities.
Abstract The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the wa... more Abstract The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the way media producers think about media audiences. This study examines this phenomenon in journalism, building on a revised theoretical model that accounts for greater audience engagement in the gatekeeping process. Research suggests that news editors, after long resisting or ignoring audience preferences, are becoming increasingly aware of and adaptive to consumer tastes as manifest via metrics.
In recent years, scholars have debated whether the growing presence of non-governmental organizat... more In recent years, scholars have debated whether the growing presence of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in news production constitutes a “boon” or “bane” for journalism. This article seeks to move beyond this dualism by grounding these debates in normative theories of public communication. Drawing on four major normative traditions, it identifies distinct roles that NGOs are tasked with performing: an expert role associated with the representative liberal tradition and oriented primarily towards norms of accuracy and transparency; an advocacy role drawn from participatory democracy and geared towards a norm of public awareness; a facilitative role rooted in discursive ethics that encourages reasoned exchanges across diverse social groups; and a critical role found in radical democratic theory that aims to expose systemic injustices. Subsequently, the article reviews the literature on NGO newsmaking practices to assess the degree to which such groups satisfy or frustrate these normative traditions. Rather than wholly good or bad for journalism, the analysis suggests that NGOs most often perform the roles associated with representative liberal and democratic participatory ideals of journalism, while marginalizing deliberative and radical traditions. The implications of these findings for future research are discussed in the conclusion.
The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the way media p... more The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the way media producers think about media audiences. This study examines this phenomenon in journalism, building on a revised theoretical model that accounts for greater audience engagement in the gatekeeping process. Research suggests that news editors, after long resisting or ignoring audience preferences, are becoming increasingly aware of and adaptive to consumer tastes as manifest via metrics. However, research also finds a gap in the news preferences of editors and audiences. This study asks: Who influences whom more in this disparity? Through longitudinal secondary data analysis of three U.S. online newspapers, and using structural equation modeling, this study finds that (1) audience clicks affect subsequent news placement, based on time-lagged analysis; (2) such influence intensifies during the course of the day; (3) there is no overall lagged effect of news placement on audience clicks; and (4) the lagged effect of audience clicks on news placement is stronger than the inverse. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.
This study examines how media system differences in the form of news change or stay the same as n... more This study examines how media system differences in the form of news change or stay the same as newspapers in the United States (liberal), Denmark (democratic corporatist), and France (polarized pluralist) move from print to online. Internet technological affordances are posited to move online news toward more advertising and information (liberal model) and more opinion and deliberation (polarized pluralist model). In the liberal direction, advertising and more localized, light news increase; toward polarized pluralism, news as a whole declines while deliberation, opinion, and nonjournalistic voices increase slightly. A lesser degree of change in France may be due to greater state insulation from market pressures; some contradictory tendencies in Denmark indicate that technological influences are shaped by contextual national factors.
Long recognized as key players in international politics, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) i... more Long recognized as key players in international politics, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) increasingly assume important roles in the provision of news. By hiring photographers, staffing online departments and funding reporting trips, NGOs act in ways that overlap with the actions of professional journalists. This article reviews and evaluates an emerging area of research – the study of NGO–journalist relations – that analyzes these developments. It proceeds in four parts: First, it overviews changes in the NGO and journalism sectors that drive growing scholarly interest in the topic. Second, it summarizes the findings of the available research. Third, it suggests some of the ways in which this research connects with concerns in the sociology of media and communication. Fourth, it evaluates the findings in light of various normative frameworks of public discourse. It concludes by suggesting that NGO–journalism scholarship can benefit from further attention by sociologists working in the areas of media and communication.
This article explores the role that nongovernmental organizations play in the changing landscape ... more This article explores the role that nongovernmental organizations play in the changing landscape of international news. Drawing on archival analysis and 65 interviews with nongovernmental organization professionals, it examines the resource commitments and values guiding research at leading humanitarian and human rights nongovernmental organizations. It finds that staff size, country coverage, and reporting capacity have increased substantially over time and now rival the resources found in major news organizations. Interviews reveal that nongovernmental organization work is guided by values of accuracy, pluralism, advocacy, and timeliness. These values overlap with and sometimes extend commonly held journalistic values, but they are not reducible to them. Findings suggest that nongovernmental organizations provide important ‘boots on the ground’ coverage of international affairs, even as their imbrication with journalistic practices raises important normative questions for nongovernmental organizations, journalists, and news audiences.
This study examines whether changes in the media, political, and civic landscapes give leading no... more This study examines whether changes in the media, political, and civic landscapes give leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs) increased news access. Using longitudinal content analysis (1990–2010) of a purposive sample of US news outlets, it compares the prevalence, prominence, and story location of news articles citing leading human rights NGOs to human rights coverage more generally. In all outlets, NGO prevalence rises over time; media-savvy NGOs drive much of the growth. By contrast, prominence decreases, as do the number of NGO-driven stories. In all outlets, NGOs typically appear in stories already in the media spotlight; as sources, they appear after the statements of government officials. Finally, the news outlets most receptive to NGOs are those that commit the fewest resources to international
news coverage. Overall, findings suggest that while NGO news access has indeed increased over time, such access continues to be shaped by established patterns of news construction.
International Journal of Press/Politics, Feb 27, 2014
This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-s... more This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-setting news outlets in the United States, Denmark, and France. Examining similarities and differences in the genres, topics, and authors of news in each country’s leading newspapers, it finds little evidence of greater online homogeneity
in any country. U.S. news outlets are more differentiated online than in print, while French news outlets have similar levels of print and online differentiation. Online data for Denmark reveal no consistent pattern in the direction of either homogeneity or differentiation. These findings suggest that the differentiating effects of the online
environment are strongest in countries (e.g., the United States) where media markets are being restructured to include more direct competition between agenda-setting news outlets at the national level. By contrast, countries (e.g., France and, to a lesser
degree, Denmark) with high levels of print differentiation have similarly high levels online due to the path-dependent effects of their national media systems.
This chapter presents a cross-national study of two local news ecosystems: Toulouse, France and S... more This chapter presents a cross-national study of two local news ecosystems: Toulouse, France and Seattle, Washington. We ask how and in what ways the news media of these two interestingly similar cities have been impacted by the economic and technological transformations of the past decade, and examine how news organizations have responded to these changes.
This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-s... more This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-setting news outlets in the United States, Denmark, and France. Examining similarities and differences in the genres, topics, and authors of news in each country’s leading newspapers, it finds little evidence of greater online homogeneity in any country. U.S. news outlets are more differentiated online than in print, while French news outlets have similar levels of print and online differentiation. Online data for Denmark reveal no consistent pattern in the direction of either homogeneity or differentiation. These findings suggest that the differentiating effects of the online environment are strongest in countries (e.g., the United States) where media markets are being restructured to include more direct competition between agenda-setting news outlets at the national level. By contrast, countries (e.g., France and, to a lesser degree, Denmark) with high levels of print differentiation have similarly high levels online due to the path-dependent effects of their national media systems.
Changes in the technologies of news production do not simply modify journalistic practices; they ... more Changes in the technologies of news production do not simply modify journalistic practices; they also introduce what might be considered technologically specific forms of work. These work forms are rooted in the affordances of novel technical capacities while also making claims about the journalistic nature of such work. How do journalists discuss the emergence of these technologically specific forms? When are new work forms seen as contributing to the practices of journalism and when are they seen as threatening it? Drawing on archival research of industry discussions, this article argues that such work is discussed in three distinct ways: (1) as exemplars of continuity;
Public media's contributions to democracy are well established. Less widely known are the specifi... more Public media's contributions to democracy are well established. Less widely known are the specific policies that make these contributions possible. This study finds that professional autonomy and civic accountability in public media are supported by (1) funding established for multiyear periods; (2) legal charters that restrict partisan government influence while also mandating the provision of diverse, high-quality programming; (3) oversight agencies, whose " arm's length " independence from the government in power is bolstered through staggered terms and the dispersal of authority to make appointments; and (4) audience councils and surveys designed to strengthen links to diverse publics. Public media governed by policies that continue and extend, rather than depart from, these best practices will likely be the most successful in maintaining their civic mission online.
Journal of Human Rights ISSN: 1475-4835 (Print) 1475-4843 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.t... more Journal of Human Rights ISSN: 1475-4835 (Print) 1475-4843 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cjhr20
This article examines the differential formation of online news startups in Toulouse, France, and... more This article examines the differential formation of online news startups in Toulouse, France, and Seattle, United States. While Seattle is home to many startups, in Toulouse there have been just 4—and only 1 continues publishing. Drawing on Bourdieu's field theory, we argue that amount and types of capital held by journalists in the 2 cities varied as a result of differences in journalism's position in the field of power. These differences shaped the extent of startup formation in each city and structured journalists' capacities to convert their capital into the resources needed to form startups (e.g., funding, credentials, partnerships). These findings are positioned in relation to literatures on journalism innovation and comparative media.
The purpose of this article is to overview the communication strategies that NGOs pursue and to s... more The purpose of this article is to overview the communication strategies that NGOs pursue and to situate these strategies within broader debates about the role of advocacy groups in politics. To do so, it reviews scholarship from a number of fields—including communication, political science, international relations, and sociology—in order to examine the ways these groups communicate, the various influences that shape these efforts, the degree to which they are successful in achieving their objectives, and the effects of their efforts on activism and media, respectively.
Previous research finds that nongovernmental organization (NGO) publicity strategies—despite digi... more Previous research finds that nongovernmental organization (NGO) publicity strategies—despite digital technologies—continue to focus heavily on garnering coverage in the mainstream news media. Drawing on theories of path dependence and interviews with NGO professionals, this paper identifies three factors that explain why this should be so. First, donors continue to value media coverage as a platform to learn about advocacy groups, as well as a mechanism for measuring their impact on political discourse. Second, political officials still value media coverage as a way to learn about advocacy demands. Third, NGOs occupy a position that is socially proximate to journalism, which leads the former to see the latter as an ally in the pursuit of publicity. Together, these factors confirm and extend the new institutional concept of " path dependence " by demonstrating how path dependence in one field (philanthropy, politics) can reinforce path dependence in another (NGO). These " reinforcing path dependencies " in turn interact with established mechanisms of institutional production (start-up costs, feedback effects, knowledge accumulation) to explain why NGOs continue to persist in media-centered publicity strategies despite new technological possibilities.
Abstract The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the wa... more Abstract The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the way media producers think about media audiences. This study examines this phenomenon in journalism, building on a revised theoretical model that accounts for greater audience engagement in the gatekeeping process. Research suggests that news editors, after long resisting or ignoring audience preferences, are becoming increasingly aware of and adaptive to consumer tastes as manifest via metrics.
In recent years, scholars have debated whether the growing presence of non-governmental organizat... more In recent years, scholars have debated whether the growing presence of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in news production constitutes a “boon” or “bane” for journalism. This article seeks to move beyond this dualism by grounding these debates in normative theories of public communication. Drawing on four major normative traditions, it identifies distinct roles that NGOs are tasked with performing: an expert role associated with the representative liberal tradition and oriented primarily towards norms of accuracy and transparency; an advocacy role drawn from participatory democracy and geared towards a norm of public awareness; a facilitative role rooted in discursive ethics that encourages reasoned exchanges across diverse social groups; and a critical role found in radical democratic theory that aims to expose systemic injustices. Subsequently, the article reviews the literature on NGO newsmaking practices to assess the degree to which such groups satisfy or frustrate these normative traditions. Rather than wholly good or bad for journalism, the analysis suggests that NGOs most often perform the roles associated with representative liberal and democratic participatory ideals of journalism, while marginalizing deliberative and radical traditions. The implications of these findings for future research are discussed in the conclusion.
The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the way media p... more The rise of sophisticated tools for tracking audiences online has begun to change the way media producers think about media audiences. This study examines this phenomenon in journalism, building on a revised theoretical model that accounts for greater audience engagement in the gatekeeping process. Research suggests that news editors, after long resisting or ignoring audience preferences, are becoming increasingly aware of and adaptive to consumer tastes as manifest via metrics. However, research also finds a gap in the news preferences of editors and audiences. This study asks: Who influences whom more in this disparity? Through longitudinal secondary data analysis of three U.S. online newspapers, and using structural equation modeling, this study finds that (1) audience clicks affect subsequent news placement, based on time-lagged analysis; (2) such influence intensifies during the course of the day; (3) there is no overall lagged effect of news placement on audience clicks; and (4) the lagged effect of audience clicks on news placement is stronger than the inverse. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.
This study examines how media system differences in the form of news change or stay the same as n... more This study examines how media system differences in the form of news change or stay the same as newspapers in the United States (liberal), Denmark (democratic corporatist), and France (polarized pluralist) move from print to online. Internet technological affordances are posited to move online news toward more advertising and information (liberal model) and more opinion and deliberation (polarized pluralist model). In the liberal direction, advertising and more localized, light news increase; toward polarized pluralism, news as a whole declines while deliberation, opinion, and nonjournalistic voices increase slightly. A lesser degree of change in France may be due to greater state insulation from market pressures; some contradictory tendencies in Denmark indicate that technological influences are shaped by contextual national factors.
Long recognized as key players in international politics, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) i... more Long recognized as key players in international politics, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) increasingly assume important roles in the provision of news. By hiring photographers, staffing online departments and funding reporting trips, NGOs act in ways that overlap with the actions of professional journalists. This article reviews and evaluates an emerging area of research – the study of NGO–journalist relations – that analyzes these developments. It proceeds in four parts: First, it overviews changes in the NGO and journalism sectors that drive growing scholarly interest in the topic. Second, it summarizes the findings of the available research. Third, it suggests some of the ways in which this research connects with concerns in the sociology of media and communication. Fourth, it evaluates the findings in light of various normative frameworks of public discourse. It concludes by suggesting that NGO–journalism scholarship can benefit from further attention by sociologists working in the areas of media and communication.
This article explores the role that nongovernmental organizations play in the changing landscape ... more This article explores the role that nongovernmental organizations play in the changing landscape of international news. Drawing on archival analysis and 65 interviews with nongovernmental organization professionals, it examines the resource commitments and values guiding research at leading humanitarian and human rights nongovernmental organizations. It finds that staff size, country coverage, and reporting capacity have increased substantially over time and now rival the resources found in major news organizations. Interviews reveal that nongovernmental organization work is guided by values of accuracy, pluralism, advocacy, and timeliness. These values overlap with and sometimes extend commonly held journalistic values, but they are not reducible to them. Findings suggest that nongovernmental organizations provide important ‘boots on the ground’ coverage of international affairs, even as their imbrication with journalistic practices raises important normative questions for nongovernmental organizations, journalists, and news audiences.
This study examines whether changes in the media, political, and civic landscapes give leading no... more This study examines whether changes in the media, political, and civic landscapes give leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs) increased news access. Using longitudinal content analysis (1990–2010) of a purposive sample of US news outlets, it compares the prevalence, prominence, and story location of news articles citing leading human rights NGOs to human rights coverage more generally. In all outlets, NGO prevalence rises over time; media-savvy NGOs drive much of the growth. By contrast, prominence decreases, as do the number of NGO-driven stories. In all outlets, NGOs typically appear in stories already in the media spotlight; as sources, they appear after the statements of government officials. Finally, the news outlets most receptive to NGOs are those that commit the fewest resources to international
news coverage. Overall, findings suggest that while NGO news access has indeed increased over time, such access continues to be shaped by established patterns of news construction.
International Journal of Press/Politics, Feb 27, 2014
This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-s... more This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-setting news outlets in the United States, Denmark, and France. Examining similarities and differences in the genres, topics, and authors of news in each country’s leading newspapers, it finds little evidence of greater online homogeneity
in any country. U.S. news outlets are more differentiated online than in print, while French news outlets have similar levels of print and online differentiation. Online data for Denmark reveal no consistent pattern in the direction of either homogeneity or differentiation. These findings suggest that the differentiating effects of the online
environment are strongest in countries (e.g., the United States) where media markets are being restructured to include more direct competition between agenda-setting news outlets at the national level. By contrast, countries (e.g., France and, to a lesser
degree, Denmark) with high levels of print differentiation have similarly high levels online due to the path-dependent effects of their national media systems.
This chapter presents a cross-national study of two local news ecosystems: Toulouse, France and S... more This chapter presents a cross-national study of two local news ecosystems: Toulouse, France and Seattle, Washington. We ask how and in what ways the news media of these two interestingly similar cities have been impacted by the economic and technological transformations of the past decade, and examine how news organizations have responded to these changes.
This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-s... more This study examines whether news is more or less homogeneous online than in print across agenda-setting news outlets in the United States, Denmark, and France. Examining similarities and differences in the genres, topics, and authors of news in each country’s leading newspapers, it finds little evidence of greater online homogeneity in any country. U.S. news outlets are more differentiated online than in print, while French news outlets have similar levels of print and online differentiation. Online data for Denmark reveal no consistent pattern in the direction of either homogeneity or differentiation. These findings suggest that the differentiating effects of the online environment are strongest in countries (e.g., the United States) where media markets are being restructured to include more direct competition between agenda-setting news outlets at the national level. By contrast, countries (e.g., France and, to a lesser degree, Denmark) with high levels of print differentiation have similarly high levels online due to the path-dependent effects of their national media systems.
Changes in the technologies of news production do not simply modify journalistic practices; they ... more Changes in the technologies of news production do not simply modify journalistic practices; they also introduce what might be considered technologically specific forms of work. These work forms are rooted in the affordances of novel technical capacities while also making claims about the journalistic nature of such work. How do journalists discuss the emergence of these technologically specific forms? When are new work forms seen as contributing to the practices of journalism and when are they seen as threatening it? Drawing on archival research of industry discussions, this article argues that such work is discussed in three distinct ways: (1) as exemplars of continuity;
Uploads
Papers by Matthew Powers
Final version in print can be found at: http://crx.sagepub.com/content/41/4/505?etoc
news coverage. Overall, findings suggest that while NGO news access has indeed increased over time, such access continues to be shaped by established patterns of news construction.
in any country. U.S. news outlets are more differentiated online than in print, while French news outlets have similar levels of print and online differentiation. Online data for Denmark reveal no consistent pattern in the direction of either homogeneity or differentiation. These findings suggest that the differentiating effects of the online
environment are strongest in countries (e.g., the United States) where media markets are being restructured to include more direct competition between agenda-setting news outlets at the national level. By contrast, countries (e.g., France and, to a lesser
degree, Denmark) with high levels of print differentiation have similarly high levels online due to the path-dependent effects of their national media systems.
Final version in print can be found at: http://crx.sagepub.com/content/41/4/505?etoc
news coverage. Overall, findings suggest that while NGO news access has indeed increased over time, such access continues to be shaped by established patterns of news construction.
in any country. U.S. news outlets are more differentiated online than in print, while French news outlets have similar levels of print and online differentiation. Online data for Denmark reveal no consistent pattern in the direction of either homogeneity or differentiation. These findings suggest that the differentiating effects of the online
environment are strongest in countries (e.g., the United States) where media markets are being restructured to include more direct competition between agenda-setting news outlets at the national level. By contrast, countries (e.g., France and, to a lesser
degree, Denmark) with high levels of print differentiation have similarly high levels online due to the path-dependent effects of their national media systems.