Success and Failure in News Media Performance: Comparative Analysis in the Media for Democracy Monitor 2021
Gothenburg: Nordicom;University of Gothenburg (2022), 360 pp.
ISBN 978-91-88855-57-2 (print); 978-91-88855-58-9 (pdf)
"The Media for Democracy Monitor (MDM) assesses the performance of leading news media in mature democracies with regard to the three core dimensions of democracy: freedom, equality, and control. After monitoring 10 countries in 2011, the MDM project expanded to cover the leading news media of 18 democracies in 2021. In this book, the most salient results from the MDM were selected to undergo cross-country and longitudinal comparison, searching for patterns and tendencies across countries, with a particular focus on the influence of digitalisation. Some of the key results are the ubiquitousness of the news media’s financial crisis, increasing consumption gaps as younger generations prefer online platforms, and persisting gender inequalities, both in news content and in newsrooms. However, the volume also shows that the reach of news media remains high, the watchdog role and investigative journalism are increasingly relevant in daily practice, and that public service media, in general, continues to play a vital role for democracy. These results have implications for media policies, regulations, and practices to improve news quality and, ultimately, democracy worldwide." (Publisher description)
1 Democracy at stake: On the need of news media monitoring / Tales Tomaz & Josef Trappel, 11
PROMINENT ISSUES ON THE PUBLIC AGENDA
2 Countering misinformation in and from the newsroom: How digital platforms redefine journalistic practice and the democratic role of news media / Eva Mayerhöffer, Marinella Belluati, Brooks DeCillia, Leen d’Haenens, Alice Fubini, Wai Han Lo, Enrique Núñez-Mussa, Jón Gunnar Ólafsson, & Rossella Rega, 35
3 Protecting journalists from harassment: Comparing existing protection mechanisms and the effects on democracy / Alice Baroni, Leen d’Haenens, & Wai Han Lo, 59
4 Gender inequalities in and through the media: Comparing gender inequalities in the media across countries / Claudia Padovani, Marinella Belluati, Achilleas Karadimitriou, Christine Horz-Ishak, & Alice Baroni, 79
5 Investigative journalism and the watchdog role of news media: Between acute challenges and exceptional counterbalances / Achilleas Karadimitriou, Torbjörn von Krogh, Christian Ruggiero, Cecilia Biancalana, Mauro Bomba, & Wai Han Lo, 101
CRITICAL ISSUES OF CONTINUITY
6 Comparing news media reach: Exploring effects of asymmetric news media consumption / Heinz Bonfadelli, Valgerður Jóhannsdóttir, Lars Nord, & Hanne Vandenberghe, 129
7 Soaring media ownership concentration: Comparing the effects of digitalisation on media pluralism and diversity / Josef Trappel & Werner A. Meier, 147
8 Commercial influence in newsrooms: Comparing strategies to resist pressure from owners and advertisers / Tales Tomaz, Joaquim Fidalgo, John Grönvall, & Josef Trappel, 165
9 Public service media: Exploring the influence of strong public service media on democracy / Barbara Thomass, Joaquim Fidalgo, John Grönvall, Achilleas Karadimitriou, & Lars Nord, 187
10 Ethical codes of conduct in journalism: Demands for a digitalising mediascape / Joaquim Fidalgo, Barbara Thomass, Christian Ruggiero, Mauro Bomba, Simone Sallusti, & Torbjörn von Krogh, 211
11 Media accountability: A cross-country comparison of content monitoring instruments and institutionalised mechanisms to control news media performance / Barbara Thomass, Francesco Marrazzo, Werner A. Meier, Gordon Ramsay, & Mark Blach-Ørsten, 231
UNDERRESEARCHED ISSUES OF GROWING RELEVANCE
12 Media transparency: Comparing how leading news media balance the need for transparency with professional ethics / Werner A. Meier & Josef Trappel, 255
13 Journalistic practices contesting the concept of internal pluralism: Mapping strategies for internal diversity in and through the news / Enrique Núñez-Mussa, Kari Karppinen, & Hanne Vandenberghe, 275
14 Practising democracy in the newsroom: Comparing practices of news processing, conflict resolution, and hiring / Josef Trappel, Joaquim Fidalgo, & Achilleas Karadimitriou, 289
ISSUES ON THE RISE
15 The professionalisation of journalism: Global trends and the challenges of training and job insecurity / Christian Ruggiero, Achilleas Karadimitriou, Wai Han Lo, Enrique Núñez-Mussa, Mauro Bomba, & Simone Sallusti, 309
16 Innovation in journalism: How technology affects the news media, publication formats, and the journalist profession / Leen d’Haenens, Wai Han Lo, & Martin Moore, 337
PROMINENT ISSUES ON THE PUBLIC AGENDA
2 Countering misinformation in and from the newsroom: How digital platforms redefine journalistic practice and the democratic role of news media / Eva Mayerhöffer, Marinella Belluati, Brooks DeCillia, Leen d’Haenens, Alice Fubini, Wai Han Lo, Enrique Núñez-Mussa, Jón Gunnar Ólafsson, & Rossella Rega, 35
3 Protecting journalists from harassment: Comparing existing protection mechanisms and the effects on democracy / Alice Baroni, Leen d’Haenens, & Wai Han Lo, 59
4 Gender inequalities in and through the media: Comparing gender inequalities in the media across countries / Claudia Padovani, Marinella Belluati, Achilleas Karadimitriou, Christine Horz-Ishak, & Alice Baroni, 79
5 Investigative journalism and the watchdog role of news media: Between acute challenges and exceptional counterbalances / Achilleas Karadimitriou, Torbjörn von Krogh, Christian Ruggiero, Cecilia Biancalana, Mauro Bomba, & Wai Han Lo, 101
CRITICAL ISSUES OF CONTINUITY
6 Comparing news media reach: Exploring effects of asymmetric news media consumption / Heinz Bonfadelli, Valgerður Jóhannsdóttir, Lars Nord, & Hanne Vandenberghe, 129
7 Soaring media ownership concentration: Comparing the effects of digitalisation on media pluralism and diversity / Josef Trappel & Werner A. Meier, 147
8 Commercial influence in newsrooms: Comparing strategies to resist pressure from owners and advertisers / Tales Tomaz, Joaquim Fidalgo, John Grönvall, & Josef Trappel, 165
9 Public service media: Exploring the influence of strong public service media on democracy / Barbara Thomass, Joaquim Fidalgo, John Grönvall, Achilleas Karadimitriou, & Lars Nord, 187
10 Ethical codes of conduct in journalism: Demands for a digitalising mediascape / Joaquim Fidalgo, Barbara Thomass, Christian Ruggiero, Mauro Bomba, Simone Sallusti, & Torbjörn von Krogh, 211
11 Media accountability: A cross-country comparison of content monitoring instruments and institutionalised mechanisms to control news media performance / Barbara Thomass, Francesco Marrazzo, Werner A. Meier, Gordon Ramsay, & Mark Blach-Ørsten, 231
UNDERRESEARCHED ISSUES OF GROWING RELEVANCE
12 Media transparency: Comparing how leading news media balance the need for transparency with professional ethics / Werner A. Meier & Josef Trappel, 255
13 Journalistic practices contesting the concept of internal pluralism: Mapping strategies for internal diversity in and through the news / Enrique Núñez-Mussa, Kari Karppinen, & Hanne Vandenberghe, 275
14 Practising democracy in the newsroom: Comparing practices of news processing, conflict resolution, and hiring / Josef Trappel, Joaquim Fidalgo, & Achilleas Karadimitriou, 289
ISSUES ON THE RISE
15 The professionalisation of journalism: Global trends and the challenges of training and job insecurity / Christian Ruggiero, Achilleas Karadimitriou, Wai Han Lo, Enrique Núñez-Mussa, Mauro Bomba, & Simone Sallusti, 309
16 Innovation in journalism: How technology affects the news media, publication formats, and the journalist profession / Leen d’Haenens, Wai Han Lo, & Martin Moore, 337
