2024 | 25 | The Datafication Challenge
Recent Submissions
- ArticleHow Can Journalists Strengthen Their Fight Against Misinformation in a Changing Media Landscape?Tulin, Marina; Hameleers, Michael; Talvitie, Christofer; Vreese, Claes de (2024)This paper reflects on challenges and opportunities for journalistic practices in the fight against misinformation in light of recent changes in the online media landscape. On the one hand, recent innovations in technology and social media facilitate a rapid spread of disinformation placing increased pressure on journalists to fight falsehoods and (re)build trust in reliable information. On the other hand, journalists might be positively affected by the EU’s recent introduction of the Digital Services Act (DSA), which aims to regulate online platforms and facilitate the fight against mis- and disinformation. We focus on fact-checking because it is among the most powerful journalistic tools against misinformation and a practice that is directly affected by the DSA. We discuss five concrete challenges and provide evidencebased suggestions backed by practice examples that may be applied by journalists who seek to advance the efficacy of their fact-checking efforts on social media.
- ArticleData Journalism, Digital Verification and AI. The Case for Newsroom ConvergencePostma, Laura (2024)This article discusses the opportunities and challenges of implementing data journalism, digital verification and AI in the centre of the newsroom. Data journalism, digital verification and fact-checking continue to be seen like jobs for specialists. As has AI, they have all entered newsrooms in various forms over the past two decades. This article comes out of preparatory work for an online course on data literacy for journalism, communication and creative industries students called MediaNumeric. The course focuses on search and exploration of data, digital skills, and tracking and debunking misinformation. As part of this special issue, this article wants to offer a sense of what is at stake in data entering newsrooms, and editorial and media production offices.
- ArticleMaintaining the Free Flow of Information. A Manifesto-like Intervention for Practice-Based Research in Academic Training Programs for Multimedia JournalismEchle, Evelyn (2024)With a changing media landscape in mind, this article takes a closer look at academic training standards for journalists. Focusing on multimedia production and innovative science, it analyses the impact on business models, resources and working conditions. As an interventionist appeal, it argues in favour of practice-based research and new training methods. Key demands include a greater awareness of the democratic role of journalism, ethical sensitivity and sustainable funding. By interweaving theory, practice and politics, this Manifesto-like paper aims to strengthen the profession of journalism and build a bridge between academia and practical training.
- ArticleVIEW Journal. Time for a JubileeVIEW editors-in-chief (2024)Editorial letter to reflect on twelve and a half years of VIEW Journal.
- ArticleData Perception and Information Disorder in the Italian Context During the PandemicCiafalo, Giovanni; Ugolini, Lorenzo; Ciammella, Fabio (2024)This paper aims to investigate how Italian audiences received and perceived data-driven television news during the Covid-19 pandemic. During this time, the logic and practices of creating and consuming television journalism were disrupted by the pandemic emergency. The paper presents the results of research carried out as part of a wider project titled “The Social Effects of Fake News” which was conducted from 2018 to 2022 within the CoRiS department of Sapienza University of Rome. The research project was reshaped in 2020, to understand the effects of what has been called “information disorder” in the areas of health, medicine, and science at a time when, together with the pandemic, an “infodemic” also emerged. We use Wardle and Derakhshan’s notion of “information disorder” as presented in their Council of Europe report. The results of the survey research we conducted show a surprising paradox. We found an interesting pattern of receiving and using information content based on data, in which users trust those who produce and validate certain data and at the same time do not believe that same data. This pattern of use indicates a particular approach to dealing with news among the Italian public. We have labelled it “know-it-all.” This article aims to deepen the understanding of this paradox of trust in experts but not in the data they deliver and how journalistic practice should deal with this conundrum.
- ArticleFriend and Foe. An Analysis of Expert Advice on Educating for Data Literacy in Journalism and the Creative IndustriesHermes. Joke; Berger, Natalia (2024)Analysis of practical advice in regard of developing a data literacy course for students in higher education and for early-career professionals in interviews with 56 experts in data analysis, offered an unexpected shared story among the experts around the perception, affect and power of data. By attending to what data are felt to be and do to you unintentionally, the analysis delivered a new story of how to teach for data literacy. Rather than (only) focus on formal skills, it points to how building a relationship with data may help more students and young professionals become curious, critical and engaged while recognizing the strengths and the fickleness of data sets.
- ArticleThe Audiovisual Archive in an Era of Disinformation and MisinformationPietsch, Jacqueline (2024)Audiovisual archives should reflect on their mission and goals in an era of overwhelming computer power. Will they be able to make good use of Large Language Models (LLMs) to unlock archived materials? Should they and can they be an ally in combating misinformation and disinformation? As part of a larger project on data literacy for journalists and other media and creative industries professionals, archivists were questioned about the challenges facing audiovisual archives today. Rather than focus on the specific missions of either national or broadcaster’s archives, they focus on how the archive has an important role when it comes to the politics of representation in public debate and civil life. In convivial conversation they speak from their experience at the French National Audiovisual Institute INA, The Netherlands Institute for Sound & Vision, the EBU Academy, the Spanish RTVE archive and WITNESS, a human rights non-profit organisation based the United States that supports activists in archiving and preserving their video.
- ArticleThe Datafication Challenge. Introduction to Themed IssueHermes, Joke; Conemans, Julia; Somers Miles, Rachel; Piwowar, Kuba (2024)Inspired by the MediaNumeric project, this issue of VIEW will take a closer look at the challenges journalists and multimedia makers face in a datafied world and how they might be trained to deal with them. The central question being how datafication for professionals is a multi-faceted challenge given diminishing trust in institutions and professionals, including misgivings and hope for data among journalists and the general public alike. This issue therefore explores how professionals might find help in not only coming to terms with datafication and algorithmic logic but also build it into a strength for public-minded news and documentary storytelling.