Assessing the growth of data journalism start-ups as alternative media and their roles in “flawed democracies

Bibliographic Data

ID7477807
AuthorsShangyuan Wu (0000-0003-3733-7988, National University of Singapore, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume25
Issue6
Pages1310-1327
Publication date2023-05-26
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournalism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1464-8849 • E-ISSN: 1741-3001
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/14648849231177830
OpenAlexW4378389595
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited42

Data journalism start-ups have emerged as viable forces in the news industry in recent years, with their creation of strong data stories that have won global data journalism awards. Such start-ups may be seen to play particularly important roles to safeguard democracy in societies where mainstream media is strictly controlled, taking on the role of alternative media to challenge the status quo. This study examines such start-ups in Asia, a fast-growing region with high Internet penetration rates but declining democracy and press freedom in international indices. This study focuses on India, Thailand and Singapore, listed as “flawed democracies” in the Economist Intelligence Unit Democracy Index, to discover the dimensions and roles of alternative media exhibited by selected data journalism start-ups there, particularly in their organizational structure, form, processes, content, and motive. Results show these organizations as focused not primarily on profits but on creating social change, offering to audiences more critical content and community voices, and playing the roles of interpreter, populist mobilizer, and even adversary. That said, politics and government do not tend to be common topics they cover – rather, systemic faults are revealed through investigations into social issues instead, revealing similarities with broader data journalism practice in the region

Citizen journalism · Democracy · Freedom of the press · Journalism · Mainstream · Media studies · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Social media · Sociology · Status quo · Asian Culture and Media Studies · Gender, Feminism, and Media · Media Studies and Communication · Law

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