Future role of local news : Strategies & conditions for local news
(2014) ECREA European Communication Conference 2014- Abstract
- The local media organisations in Sweden have the last years been involved in initiating new model of business (Melesko 2013). They have mainly been based on economical actions, as cut-downs of editorial staff, integration of different pressrooms and expanded co-operation between papers within same media organisations (Nygren 2013). For instance, editorials and cover of culture news has on several local papers been centralized. Other phenomena is instead of hiring journalists media companies have started job-pools where journalists are supposed to service many papers with same news. It’s notable that in the transformation of the Swedish local press the future role of news journalism has up-till now not been a big issue when it comes to the... (More)
- The local media organisations in Sweden have the last years been involved in initiating new model of business (Melesko 2013). They have mainly been based on economical actions, as cut-downs of editorial staff, integration of different pressrooms and expanded co-operation between papers within same media organisations (Nygren 2013). For instance, editorials and cover of culture news has on several local papers been centralized. Other phenomena is instead of hiring journalists media companies have started job-pools where journalists are supposed to service many papers with same news. It’s notable that in the transformation of the Swedish local press the future role of news journalism has up-till now not been a big issue when it comes to the strategies of the media organisations (Picard & Ots, 2011). Future models of local press survival accentuate the need of rethinking newspaper content and connection with their readers (Rouger 2008). Local newspapers and local news journalism has an important role to play in the society. More studies that concern how media organisations strategically work on development of local news and journalism in context of media concentration and organizational restructurings are therefore needed.
Conclusions:
Strategies taken by local papers in purpose of surviving the on-going development has mainly been from a economical standpoint which has primarily implied tighten up the organisation as cutting down on staff, implementing multi-task journalism, co-operation within the paper also with other papers in the same organisation, circulation of same editorial material on several web platforms and so on. Focus has also been moved from being a print paper to an on-line one, which the two cases in this study are examples of. But the content and what affects the changes will have on the quality of news journalism have up-till now not been paid much attention to when the media companies have drawn up their strategies for the future news papers. Newspaper organizations deal with several challenges, such as how to produce an interesting local content with shrinking band of journalists and increasingly centralized production; a need to find new readers and produce quality news for new groups of readers focused on what they want and are willing to pay for. And, there is a most important issue to manage: how to maintain the local newspapers role as servant of society.
Traditionally, newspapers have placed greater emphasis on their role as promoters of public interests and on becoming trusted institution of society as John Street (2011) and Mikael Schudson (2003) among several scholars have displayed. Thus, the strength of emphasis placed on economic self-interests by some newspapers in recent years is disconcerting to many people inside and outside the industry. Economic pressures are becoming the primary forces shaping the behaviour of newspaper companies. That pressure may affect journalistic quality that diminish the value of newspaper content and that divert attention of newspaper staff from journalism to activities primarily related to business interests. The role of newspapers as servants of citizens is no longer clear as both Castells (2009) and Street (2011) have indicated. It is possible that readers’ interest of the press is decreasing because of the growing image of the press as just another business that is primarily interested in own survival and not serving democracy. (Less) - Abstract (Swedish)
- One of the main issues in context of the severe economical changes on the local media market and the measures the media companies are forced to take is how to maintain high quality of news journalism in the local press. There are concerns that the quality of news will decline and content will be commercialized as McManus (1994) describes it as a market-driven journalism when profit becomes the leading theme in making journalism. Franklin (2008) and McChesney and Nichols (2011) describe how quality news journalism are torn apart and even massacred by processes of commercialization and growing media concentration.
Future models of local press survival accentuate the need of rethinking newspaper content and connection with their readers... (More) - One of the main issues in context of the severe economical changes on the local media market and the measures the media companies are forced to take is how to maintain high quality of news journalism in the local press. There are concerns that the quality of news will decline and content will be commercialized as McManus (1994) describes it as a market-driven journalism when profit becomes the leading theme in making journalism. Franklin (2008) and McChesney and Nichols (2011) describe how quality news journalism are torn apart and even massacred by processes of commercialization and growing media concentration.
Future models of local press survival accentuate the need of rethinking newspaper content and connection with their readers (Rouger 2008). Local newspapers and local news journalism has an important role to play in the society. More studies that concern how media organisations strategically work on development of local news and journalism in context of media concentration and organizational restructurings are therefore needed.
Object of this paper is to examine changing strategies and conditions for local news journalism in the case of Swedish local newspapers. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/e40ec748-048a-4e54-968d-fe389acb826f
- author
- Cepaite Nilsson, Asta LU and Stúr, Elisabeth
- organization
- publishing date
- 2014-11-12
- type
- Contribution to conference
- publication status
- published
- subject
- conference name
- ECREA European Communication Conference 2014
- conference location
- Lisbon, Portugal
- conference dates
- 2014-11-12 - 2014-11-15
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- e40ec748-048a-4e54-968d-fe389acb826f
- date added to LUP
- 2021-11-15 12:59:53
- date last changed
- 2023-09-20 07:51:13
@misc{e40ec748-048a-4e54-968d-fe389acb826f,
abstract = {{The local media organisations in Sweden have the last years been involved in initiating new model of business (Melesko 2013). They have mainly been based on economical actions, as cut-downs of editorial staff, integration of different pressrooms and expanded co-operation between papers within same media organisations (Nygren 2013). For instance, editorials and cover of culture news has on several local papers been centralized. Other phenomena is instead of hiring journalists media companies have started job-pools where journalists are supposed to service many papers with same news. It’s notable that in the transformation of the Swedish local press the future role of news journalism has up-till now not been a big issue when it comes to the strategies of the media organisations (Picard & Ots, 2011). Future models of local press survival accentuate the need of rethinking newspaper content and connection with their readers (Rouger 2008). Local newspapers and local news journalism has an important role to play in the society. More studies that concern how media organisations strategically work on development of local news and journalism in context of media concentration and organizational restructurings are therefore needed.<br/>Conclusions: <br/>Strategies taken by local papers in purpose of surviving the on-going development has mainly been from a economical standpoint which has primarily implied tighten up the organisation as cutting down on staff, implementing multi-task journalism, co-operation within the paper also with other papers in the same organisation, circulation of same editorial material on several web platforms and so on. Focus has also been moved from being a print paper to an on-line one, which the two cases in this study are examples of. But the content and what affects the changes will have on the quality of news journalism have up-till now not been paid much attention to when the media companies have drawn up their strategies for the future news papers. Newspaper organizations deal with several challenges, such as how to produce an interesting local content with shrinking band of journalists and increasingly centralized production; a need to find new readers and produce quality news for new groups of readers focused on what they want and are willing to pay for. And, there is a most important issue to manage: how to maintain the local newspapers role as servant of society.<br/>Traditionally, newspapers have placed greater emphasis on their role as promoters of public interests and on becoming trusted institution of society as John Street (2011) and Mikael Schudson (2003) among several scholars have displayed. Thus, the strength of emphasis placed on economic self-interests by some newspapers in recent years is disconcerting to many people inside and outside the industry. Economic pressures are becoming the primary forces shaping the behaviour of newspaper companies. That pressure may affect journalistic quality that diminish the value of newspaper content and that divert attention of newspaper staff from journalism to activities primarily related to business interests. The role of newspapers as servants of citizens is no longer clear as both Castells (2009) and Street (2011) have indicated. It is possible that readers’ interest of the press is decreasing because of the growing image of the press as just another business that is primarily interested in own survival and not serving democracy.}},
author = {{Cepaite Nilsson, Asta and Stúr, Elisabeth}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{11}},
title = {{Future role of local news : Strategies & conditions for local news}},
year = {{2014}},
}