Between Self-Regulation and Participatory Monitoring

Comparing Digital News Media Accountability Practices in Spain

Bibliographic Data

ID7493166
AuthorsPedro Luis Pérez Díaz (0000-0003-1104-0262, corresponding author), Rocio Zamora Medina (0000-0002-0541-2456), Enrique Arroyas Langa (0000-0001-6578-1571)
Year2020
Volume8
Issue2
Pages112-123
Publication date2020-04-16
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMedia and Communication (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2183-2439 • E-ISSN: 2183-2439
PublisherCogitatio (PUBLISHER • PT)
DOI10.17645/mac.v8i2.2721
OpenAlexW3016696127
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited16

In recent years, the accountability practices of digital journalism have gone from constituting an intimate and self-regulatory system of journalistic culture to a complex process that is increasingly external and open to the public (Fengler, Eberwein, Mazzoleni, Porlezza, & Russ-Mohl, 2014; Suárez-Villegas, Rodríguez-Martínez, Mauri-Ríos, & López-Meri, 2017). In this context, values and goals may remain diverse, arguably linked to idiosyncratic elements which often open a gap between traditional and more contemporary newsroom models. Following a qualitative approach, this study examines online media accountability instruments from a functional perspective, dividing its influence in three temporal phases of news production (Heikkilä et al., 2012). In this way, instruments that hold journalists responsible for their work are explored in four leading online news media from Spain: two digital native outlets ( Eldiario.es and ElConfidencial.com ) and two legacy outlets ( ElPais.com and ElMundo.es ). In addition to this observation, in-depth interviews are conducted with staff members in charge of audience management to explore the inner routines and protocols that determine the efficacy of such aspirations. Our work reveals the preponderant role of instruments focused on the actor and production transparency that the studied media implement to fulfill their responsibility, especially when compared with the weakened self-regulation instruments. The answers of the interviewees stress the difficulties they face in managing participatory forms of accountability and disclose tensions between different strategies, as well as other structural factors that are discussed as essential for the consolidation of these deontological initiatives

Accountability · Citizen journalism · Context (archaeology · Digital media · Geography · Journalism · Media studies · Political science · Public relations · Social media · Sociology · Transparency (behavior · Media Studies and Communication · Radio, Podcasts, and Digital Media · Social Media and Politics · Law

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access