Participation in Local Journalism. Assessing Two Approaches through Access, Dialogue and Deliberation
(2018) Sur le journalisme — (2018)
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- Abstract
- Within the ongoing discussion on the role of participation in journalism, this paper proposes to focus on participatory practices in the local context. Drawing from a journalism criticism perspective, it assesses the forms that citizen participation takes in two operations. The first is a non-profit network of citizen online hyperlocal news websites in Brussels (Belgium) called Dewey. The second is a professional weekly freesheet in Stockholm named Södra Sidan. To do so, the material comprises 22 semi-structured interviews as well as observation at both structures. Participation in the two projects is examined through a matrix model consisting of three levels, (1) the local community, (2) the production practices and (3) the local public sphere, as well as three steps, (1) access, (2) dialogue and (3) deliberation, to investigate how citizens are provided possibilities to engage with local news. Though participation is at the heart of both cases, results show that it is performed differently: Dewey is strong in providing access to the project itself as well as to news production in the hopes to empower individuals, whereas Södra Sidan’s approach is more efficient in generating dialogue and deliberation among citizens, hence also influencing how issues are addressed in the local public sphere. This comparison highlights the plurality of forms and meanings that participation adopts in the local context.
- Affiliations
Université Libre de Bruxelles ReSIC
Citations
Ahva, L., & Wiard, V. (2018). Participation in Local Journalism. Assessing Two Approaches through Access, Dialogue and Deliberation. Sur le journalisme. Submitted. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/22322 (Original work published 2018)