Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Journalism|Communication|Information science'

Algorithmic curation is a growing influence on our information flows as it complements and sometimes supplants traditional mass media and personal information sharing. One of the primary agents of this rise in algorithmically-curated information flows is the Facebook News Feed, a onetime source of primarily entertainment that has, as of late, taken large strides towards the news business. It is fair to say that Facebook has a huge influence on our information, one that will likely expand in the future; even if not Facebook, similar systems will rule our information. Yet, we know next to nothing about how they work, as the algorithms that power them are sealed inside a black box. This thesis approaches the Facebook News Feed through a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods in a process dubbed “Negative Reverse Engineering” in an attempt to gain access to the contents of the black box not through traditional technical means, but through an analysis of Facebook’s values structure and needs. Components include an extensive, cross-disciplinary review of the literature, an experiment based around the generation of filter bubbles through the application of negative pressure, a grounded content analysis of Facebook’s statements and documents, an autoethnography of Facebook use, and a regression analysis of Facebook under duress. From this data, a Hierarchy of Needs for the News Feed is created, rejecting the model of News Feed filtering as an equation in favor of a holistic, values-based model.

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Science forms an integral part of our lives. It is tied to social practices, public policies and political affairs. Yet, very little is reported on it unless it is making hard news. This thesis was written from the premise that the public requires as much accurate information as possible to make choices and decisions. In many instances, they solely depend on the news media to supply that information. Journalists have a responsibility to reflect and explain the complexity of a world that is increasingly influenced by science. In Namibia the establishment of conservancies under the CBNRM programme of government, have an influence on many rural people's lives who would previously not have been too concerned about science news. Through the Media and Publicity Strategy of the CBNRM programme, communication of the environmental message of conservancies has been successful to a large extent, especially in terms of reportage in the local press. The messages conveyed in the press have been overwhelmingly positive and supportive of the system. From the perspective of the level of journalism practised in this regard, the effort has not been that great. Publications in Namibia operate on very limited budgets and have to manage with a minimum number of reporters. This means journalists are expected to cover a range of different beats, and are seldom offered the opportunity to develop as specialist writers in specific fields. The field of science and environment is generally not regarded as an area that produces hard news on a regular basis. This was evident in the articles reviewed for the purposes of this thesis. The majority of stories were written from press releases or field trips organised by the CBNRM programme organisers. Stories that were self-generated were not very well researched, or did not follow through on potential hard news angles or ideas. In a world of war, hunger, poverty, diseases and many other tragedies, the story of the development of communal conservancies is a wonderfully positive story that highlights the success of sustainable development, the upliftment of the rural poor and achievements in terms of conservation. It is a welcome change for journalists to tell a positive story to the world. However, as journalists should know, every story has two sides. The purpose is not necessarily to find fault with the conservancy philosophy or to shoot it down or find sensationalism where it is not due. Their role is to present a full, unbiased account of the facts so that their readers can make up their own minds on whether they support the concept, or not. If journalists failed to inform their readers about the problems experienced by the implementation of conservancies, then they have failed to give their readers the full picture. The conclusions drawn in this thesis on the level of science or environmental reporting in Namibia, serve to emphasise the urgent need for specialist writers in the profession. A handful of dedicated and committed science writers that increasingly raises the level of reporting will make a vast difference in the fields of science and environment in Namibia.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Wetenskap vorm 'n integrale deel van ons lewens. Dit is gebind aan sosiale gebruike, openbare beleidsrigtings en politieke sake. Tog word daar baie min daaroor geskryf, behalwe wanneer dit harde nuus is. Hierdie tesis is geskryf vanuit die oogpunt dat die publiek soveel as moontlik akkurate inligting nodig het om keuses te maak. In baie gevalle vertrou hulle uitsluitlik op die nuus media om daardie inligting te verskaf. Joernaliste het 'n verantwoordelikheid om 'n wêreld wat al hoe meer beïnvloed word deur wetenskap te verduidelik. In Namibië het die daarstelling van bewareas deur die CBNRM-program van die regering, 'n groot invloed op die lewens van baie plattelandse mense se lewens gehad wat voorheen nie veel sou omgegee het oor wetenskapnuus nie. Die daarstelling van bewareas het 'n hele nuwe wêreld met baie nuwe uitdagings tot by hulle voordeur gebring. Dit was belangrik om hulle genoegsaam in te lig oor die voor- en nadele van die stelsel om hulle in staat te stelom te besluit of hulle wou betrokke raak of nie. Die boodskap wat die pers oorgedra het, was oorweldigend positief met baie steun vir die stelsel. Vanuit 'n joernalistieke perspektief gesien, was die beriggewing rue so noemenswaardig nie. Publikasies in Namibië werk met baie beperkte begrotings en moet klaarkom met 'n minimum aantal verslaggewers. Dit beteken daar word van joernaliste verwag om oor 'n wye verskeidenheid onderwerpe te skryf. Wetenskap- en omgewingsberiggewing word oor die algemeen gesien as 'n gebied wat nie werklik harde nuus op 'n gereelde basis produseer nie. Dit het duidelik gebleik uit die artikels wat ontleed is vir die doel van die tesis. Die meerderheid van die stories is geskryf van persverklarings en uitstappies georganiseer deur die CBNRM. Die stories wat wel self gegenereer is, was nie baie goed nagevors rue. In 'n wêreld van oorlog, hongersnood, armoede en siektes, is die ontwikkeling van . bewareas 'n wonderlike positiewe storie wat dien as bewys van die sukses van volhoubare ontwikkel, die opheffmg van plattelandse arm mense en wat bereik kan word met bewaring. Dit is 'n welkome verandering vir joernaliste om vir 'n slag 'n positiewe storie aan die wêreld te vertel. Maar, soos joernaliste behoort te weet, het elke storie twee kante. Die doel van 'n joernalis is nie noodwendig om fout te vind met die filosofie van bewareas nie, of om dit af te skiet of sensasie te soek waar dit nie nodig is nie. Hulle rol is om 'n volledige, onsydige verslag van die feite weer te gee sodat hulle lesers self kan besluit of hulle die konsep ondersteun of nie. As joernaliste daarin gefaal het om hulle lesers in te lig oor die probleme wat ondervind is met die implementering van bewareas, dan het hulle daarin gefaal om die volledige prentjie aan hulle lesers te skets. Die slotsom van die tesis oor die vlak van wetenskap- en omgewingsjoernalistiek in Namibië is dat daar 'n dringende tekort aan spesialis skrywers in die professie is. Selfs net 'n handvol toegewyde wetenskapskrywers sal al klaar 'n groot verbetering bring in die kwaliteit van verslaggewing in die wetenskap- en omgewingsvakgebied in Namibië.

Mokslo žinių sklaidos visuomenei procesas, tarpininkaujant žiniasklaidos kanalams, apima tris pagrindinius komunikacijos dalyvius: mokslininkus, žurnalistus ir visuomenę. Kada pastarieji yra suinteresuoti ir aktyviai dalyvauja procese, mokslo žurnalistikos procesas gali būti efektyvus ir realizuoti šiuolaikinio komunikacijos proceso – interaktyvaus dialogo – reikalavimus. Komunikacijos tarp žurnalistų ir mokslininkų, tarp mokslininkų ir visuomenės, tarp žurnalistų ir visuomenės ypatumai yra svarbūs, kalbant apie mokslo populiarinimo sklaidos žiniasklaidos kanalais sistemingumą, vertinant mokslo žurnalistikos profesionalumą. Šiame darbe yra analizuojami komunikacijos tarp mokslininkų ir žurnalistų ypatumai, aptariant ir kitų mokslo populiarinimo komunikacijos proceso dalyvių santykius bei ryšius. Darbo tikslas – išanalizuoti mokslo ir žurnalistikos sąveikos trūkumus, atskleisti mokslininkų ir žurnalistų komunikacijos ypatumus bei parengti profesionaliosios mokslo žurnalistikos kūrimo gaires Lietuvai, įvertinant Suomijos patirtį. Darbo objektas – žurnalistų, mokslininkų ir kitų Lietuvos bei Suomijos ekspertų šiandieninės mokslo žurnalistikos vertinimai. Pirmasis darbo uždavinys, - remiantis mokslinės literatūros srautu, atskleisti mokslo žurnalistikos sociokomunikacines prielaidas bei identifikuoti vyraujančius mokslo populiarinimo teorinius modelius. Apžvelgus mokslinę literatūrą ir identifikavus mokslo populiarinimo raidos bei transformacijų ypatumus, matoma, kad tikslumas... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]
Transmission of scientific news through media channels involves three main communication members: scientists, journalists and society. If all three participants are active and interested in communication, effective process of science journalism or even interactive dialogue between communication members can be realized. Interaction peculiarities in communication between journalists and scientists, between scientists and society or between journalists and society are significant while describing consistency of scientific news in media channels or evaluating science journalism professionalism in the country. In this thesis peculiarities of scientists’ and journalists’ communication are analyzed and intercourses between other communication members are discussed. The aim of this thesis was to identify weaknesses of interaction between systems of science and journalism, to find out communication peculiarities in scientists’ and journalists’ socialization and to frame guidelines for professional science journalism in Lithuania, while evaluating Finish experiences. The title of the thesis - Science journalism: assumptions, experiences and challenges in Lithuania and Finland. The first objective of this thesis was to identify science journalism socio-communicational assumptions and to evaluate dominating popular science communication models according to the flow of scientific literature. It was found, that problems of accuracy and objectivity in science journalism were significant... [to full text]

Health officials estimate that the 2014 Ebola crisis disproportionately victimized women, who made up 75% of the disease's victims. This interdisciplinary study has two main goals. The first is to evaluate the news media's performance in relation to their representation of women caught up in the Ebola crisis because the media play an important role in influencing public responses to health. This study sought to understand the information behavior patterns of journalists who covered the Ebola crisis by analyzing how job tasks influence a journalist's information behavior. This study employed qualitative methods to study the perceptions of journalists who covered the 2014 Ebola outbreak. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with Liberian and American journalists who covered the outbreak to understand the choices that guided their reporting of the Ebola crisis. A content analysis of The New York Times, The Times, and The Inquirer was also conducted to examine the new media's representation of women in an outbreak which mostly victimized women. The findings suggest that covering a dangerous assignment like Ebola affected the information behavior patterns of journalists. Audience needs, the timing of coverage, fear, and the accessibility of sources, were some of the factors that influenced the news gathering decisions taken by the reporters. The findings also suggest that women were mostly underrepresented by the media as sources, experts and subjects.

Thesis (MPhil) -- Stellenbosch University, 2004.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Background: Cloning is a topic that has long fascinated people. It has imbedded itself into popular culture, but studies show that the general public has, at best, only a vague understanding of what cloning entails. Alternatively, their perception has been skewed by that very same popular culture. However, cloning is a complex scientific subject that has considerable ethical implications. It is the kind of topic that people in a deliberate democracy should know about. The media play an important role in the education of the public with regards to science and technology. However, the media have the potential to do more than provide the basic facts. In fact, the media can play an important role in influencing the actions and opinions of the public. It is therefore a responsibility of the media to provide accurate information on scientific developments, such as cloning. Objective: An analysis of three daily newspapers in the Western Cape was carried out to determine how cloning is reported. The broad topics addressed were whether the coverage focused on the ethical or scientific aspects of cloning, if the subject was reported in a positive or negative tone, and whether the science of cloning was adequately explained. Methodology: A quantitative content analysis was completed of a sample of 69 articles. These articles were all those relating to cloning that appeared in three daily newspapers (Cape Argus, Cape Times and Die Burger) over a period of one year from 10 November 2002 to 10 November 2003. Findings: Of all the articles analysed 34% focused on the scientific aspects, 21% focused on the ethical aspects, 6% focused on both ethics and science, while 39% focused on neither. Fifty two percent of articles dealing specifically with animal cloning focused on the science, while only 4% focused on the ethics. However, in articles dealing specifically with human cloning, more (30%) emphasised ethical aspects than scientific aspects (20%). With regards to tone of coverage, 32% of all the articles analysed were positive, 28% negative, and 40% neutral. Sixty percent of articles dealing specifically with animal cloning featured a positive tone, while only 13% of articles exclusively about human cloning had a positive tone. This 13% was comprised of articles on therapeutic rather than reproductive cloning. In terms of explaining the science associated with cloning, only 30% of articles provided an explicit explanation. Potential threats to the accuracy of explaining science were found to exist. Conclusions: While the overall findings were somewhat indistinct it seemed that when the media of the Western Cape reported on the cloning of animals it was done with a positive tone and emphasised the scientific aspects. Reporting on human cloning tended to feature a negative tone and emphasised the ethical aspects. The large number of ‘neutral’ results for both the ‘tone’ and 'science or ethics’ variables could indicate that the media were wishing to remain neutral. However, the large number of neutral articles relating to the ‘science or ethics’ variable could have a negative impact on public understanding. The small number of articles explaining cloning and an emphasis on ‘breakthrough’ news stories could also have a negative impact on public understanding.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Agtergrond: Kloning is ‘n onderwerp wat die mensdom lank interesseer. Maar selfs al vorm kloning ‘n deel van ons populere kultuur, wys navorsing dat die groot publiek maar vaagweg verstaan wat die onderwerp behels. Dit is ook moontlik dat hul persepsie negatief bemvloed is deur dieselfde populere kultuur. Maar kloning is ‘n komplekse wetenskaplike onderwerp met aansienlike etiese gevolgtrekkings. Dit is ‘n onderwerp waarvan mense in ‘n demokratiese samelewing moet weet. Die media speel ‘n belangrike rol in die groot publiek se opleiding in wetenskap. Maar die media het die potensiaal om meer te doen as net die basiese feite deur te gee. Die media het die potensiaal om die gedrag en menings van die publiek te beTnvloed. Daarom is dit die verantwoordelikheid van die media om akkurate inligting oor wetenskaplike ontwikkelings, soos kloning, te voorsien. Dolewit: Drie daaglikse koerante in die Weskaap is geanaliseer om te bepaal hoe kloning gedek word. Daar is bepaal of die artikels op die etiese of wetenskaplike aspekte van kloning fokus, of die onderwerp in ‘n positiewe of negatiewe toon gedek is, en of die wetenskaplike aspekte doeltreffend verduidelik is. Metode: ‘n Kwantitatiewe inhoudsanalise van 69 artikels is voltooi. Die geanaliseerde artikels is al die oor kloning wat in drie daaglikse koerante (Cape Argus, Cape Times en Die Burger) tussen 10 November 2002 en 10 November 2003 verskyn het. Bevindinge: Van die artikels het 34% net op die wetenskaplike aspekte van kloning gefokus, 21% net op die etiese aspekte, en 6% op beide etiek en wetenskap. Geen van die twee aspekte is in 39% van artikels beklemtoon nie. Van die artikels wat spesifiek oor dierkloning geskryf is, het 52% op die wetenskaplike aspekte gefokus. Net 4% het op die etiese aspekte gefokus. In die geval van artikels oor die kloning van mense, het meer (30%) die etiese aspekte as die wetenskaplike aspekte (20%) beklemtoon. Met betrekking tot die toon, was 32% van al die artikels positief, 28% negatief, en 40% neutraal. In die geval van artikels uitsluitlik oor dierkloning het 60% ‘n positiewe toon gedui, terwyl net 13% van artikels oor menslike kloning in ‘n positiewe toon geskryf was. Die 13% het bestaan uit artikels oor terapeutiese kloning. Geen artikels oor reproduktiewe kloning was met ‘n positiewe toon geskryf nie. Net 30% van artikels het ‘n uitdruklike verduideliking van die geassosieerde wetenskap gegee. Daar is moontlike bedreigings tot die akkuraatheid van wetenskaplike verduidelikings gevind. Gevolgtrekkings: Die algemene bevindinge is ietwat onduidelik maar dit blyk dat die daaglikse koerante van die Weskaap ‘n positiewe toon in hul dekking van dierkloning gebruik het. Die wetenskaplike aspekte van dierkloning was in die artikels beklemtoon. Berigte oor menskloning was in ‘n negatiewe toon geskryf en het die etiese aspekte daarvan beklemtoon. Die groot hoeveelheid ‘neutraal’ resultate vir die ‘toon’ en ‘wetenskap of etiek’ veranderlikes dui moontlik dat die media probeer het om neutraal te bly in hul dekking. Die groot hoeveelheid ‘neutraal’ artikels vir die ‘wetenskap of etiek’ veranderlike kan dalk ‘n negatiewe invloed op publieke begrip van kloning he. Die klein hoeveelheid artikels wat kloning verduidelik, en ‘n klem op ‘deurbraak’ nuusstories kan ook dalk ‘n negatiewe invloed op publieke begrip he.

Dissertação apresentada à Universidade Fernando Pessoa como parte dos requisitos para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Ciências da Informação e da Documentação
A presente dissertação de Mestrado em Ciências da Informação e Documentação, intitulada “Práticas de Indexação na Imprensa” pretende mostrar de que forma a Ciência da Informação contribui na ação das Ciências da Comunicação no que diz respeito à utilização da informação, desde a sua recolha, tratamento e difusão até ao arquivo e recuperação. Neste sentido, é feita uma reflexão sobre o papel dos arquivos e centros de documentação dos meios de comunicação social em geral. Estes são responsáveis pelo tratamento documental dos conteúdos jornalísticos produzidos nas redações; não sendo possível dissociar esta função do conhecimento intrínseco do seu potencial informativo, que assenta, naturalmente, no valor de memória, narratividade e democratização da divulgação. Tudo é contextualizado no novo paradigma comunicacional que os meios de comunicação social percorrem nesta era digital em que vivemos. Partindo do princípio de que a Ciência da Informação estuda a informação como um processo social, desde a génese ao armazenamento, a Indexação assume um papel preponderante desta prática social, visto que conduzirá à sua categorização/representação e recuperação, construindo a informação e transformando-a em conhecimento. Assim, é apresentado o modus operandi do Arquivo e Centro de Documentação do Grupo Controlinveste, no que concerne à política de indexação e recuperação de informação. Tal constitui o estudo de caso realizado com base na investigação in loco, cujos objetivos assentam no levantamento das variáveis inferidas nas linhas de atuação no momento da indexação e, consequentemente, na perceção das prioridades durante a recuperação da informação. Para tal, foram analisados os diferentes tesauros construídos pelo Arquivo e Centro de Documentação do Grupo Controlinveste, tendo em conta as categorias temáticas que abrangem, assim como os termos, a estrutura e relações básicas. Após a análise de uma amostra aleatória de documentos deste arquivo, foi possível delinear as principais variáveis definidoras da política de indexação aplicada. Neste sentido, os mesmos conteúdos foram abordados quanto ao número de descritores por documento; à utilização de Tesauros por documento; o recurso ao infraconceito e à harmonia do assunto em relação à secção do jornal. Tratando-se de um aspeto peculiar deste estudo, foi dedicado uma especial atenção ao uso dos Infraconceitos, tendo sido feita uma breve reflexão e análise à sua relação na indexação de fotografias. Em forma de súmula, foram registadas as linhas de atuação na indexação dos documentos analisados, aferindo da verosimilhança das declarações proferidas pelo Diretor do Arquivo e Centro de Documentação do Grupo Controlinveste na entrevista efetuada, que serviu de consolidação deste trabalho de investigação.
The current Dissertation of Master’s Degree in Information and Documentation Science, entitled “Pratices of Indexing in the Press” is aimed to show how the Information Science contributes in the action of the Communication Science as regards the use of information, since its collecting, treatment and diffusion to its archive and consequent retrieval. In this sense, a reflection is done on the role of the archives and documentation centres of the media in general. These are responsible for the documental treatment of the journalistic contents produced in the newsrooms of those media, thus not rendering it possible to dissociate that function to the intrinsic knowledge of its informative potential, which relies in the value of memory, narrative style and democratization of the disclosure. Everything is put into context in the new communication paradigm the media wander in this digital era in which we live. Assuming that the Information Science studies the information as a social process, from its genesis to its storage, the Indexing process takes on a ruling role of this social practice, since it will lead to its categorization/representation and retrieval, construing the information and transforming it into knowledge. Thus, the modus operandi of the Archive and Documentation Centre of the Group Controlinveste is presented, in what it concerns the politics of indexing and retrieval of information. Such constitutes the case study performed with the basis in the investigation in loco, whose aims are based in the collection of variables inferred in the lines of action in the moment of indexing and, consequently, in the perception of the priorities during the retrieval of information. For that purpose, the different thesauri built by the Archive and Documentation Centre of the Group Controlinveste were analyzed, being taken into consideration the thematic categories they comprise, as well as the terms, its structure and basic relations. After the analysis of a small random demonstration of documents from this archive, it became possible to outline the main variables which define the politics of indexing applied. In this sense, the same contents were approached as to the number of descriptors by document; as to the use of Thesauri by document; the resource to infraconcept and the harmony of the matter to the newspaper section.Being as it is a peculiar aspect of this study, a special attention was dedicated to the use of Infraconcepts; thus a brief reflection and analysis to its relation in the indexing of photographic images has been done. In summary, the lines of action in the indexing of the analyzed documents were registered, going towards to the statements uttered by the Director of the Archive and Documentation Centre of the Group Controlinveste in the interview that was conducted, which served the purpose of consolidation of this research work.

The advent of genetically modified (GM) food in New Zealand in 1998 saw the beginning of a highly politicised debate about GM use in the country. The concern over GM and the political situation after the 1999 general election saw the Government establish a Royal Commission of Inquiry on Genetic Modification in May, 2000. The Royal Commission and strong public opposition to GM, evident in large public protests and other actions, made the issue highly newsworthy. The aim of this study was to explore how newspapers reported the GM debate, in particular, examining whether the reportage facilitated greater public debate and awareness about GM through journalists adhering to the ideals of the theory of social responsibility and enacting their watchdog role as encapsulated in the Fourth Estate tradition of the media. To achieve these aims the overall tone of the reportage and also which news source types and themes were most frequently reported were examined. In addition, the relationship and perceptions of scientists and journalists involved in the reporting were explored to examine how these relationships may have influenced the reportage. Content analysis showed the reportage had a pro-GM bias with policy-makers, scientists and industry spokespeople the most frequently cited news sources. The themes of Science, Economics and Politics dominated the reportage. Other source types and themes were less represented, especially themes dealing with ethical and environmental arguments. This lack of representation occurred despite the Royal Commission offering a space for all interested parties to speak. The interviews illustrated that scientists believed the quality of newspaper coverage of GM lacked depth and that important issues were unreported. Journalists found the issue complex to report and said they took care not to oversimplify the science and issues surrounding GM. The relationship between scientists and journalists indicated particular tensions existing between the two groups. The thesis concludes that if robust public debate is to occur within New Zealand regarding GM and other scientific developments, then the media should reflect a greater diversity of opinion by citing other potential news sources offering alternative arguments based on, for example, ethical or environmental grounds.

The object of this research is the practice of quality news on internet-native news outlets. It aimed at answering the following questions:

1) What is high quality news in internet-native news outlets? What is the criterion?

2) What are the process of development and experience of internet as news outlets? Why do professional journalists of traditional media seek internet as news outlets?

3) How do journalists use ICTs to make the best of alternative news outlets? What are the operation models and their characteristics?

This dissertation derived from the assumption that internet-native news outlets are effective journalistic practices to improve the quality of the news. To understand this proposition, various perspectives of definition and the way of measuring the quality of the news were adopted in this research. Practically, three internet-native news outlets were chosen as case studies in this research: The French website Rue89, Belgium website Apache and Spanish website Eldiario. The empirical part of this study includes twenty in-depth interviews and observation in their newsrooms, and basic statistics of top news stories in the home page of six websites from the three countries. Therefore, both quantitative and qualitative methods have been used in this research.

The contribution of this research is rethinking quality journalism in the digital age and introducing the journalistic experiences of professional journalists. First, this research provides an academic definition for the newly generated websites, and theorizes it as Internet-native news outlets. Next, this research analysed internet-native news outlets systematically, especially importing the European journalism website to the domain of online journalism studies. Moreover, the introduction of journalist’s statues in different countries is a valuable complement for journalism studies. Furthermore, the method of interview, observation and case study were applied in this research, which is a new examination of online journalism research. Finally, internet-native news outlets create a positive interaction between journalists and readers, which also enrich the news issues and news resource. It is quite important to rethink and discover the social problems. These academic explorations certainly confront many challenges because of majority of social and culture factors, but the results would be valuable for the reflection on knowledge construction in the international academy.

Doctorat en Information et communication
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Le lien hypertexte, élément fondamental du web, est porteur de nombreuses promesses pour le journalisme en ligne :il permettrait la mise en boucle des informations, et révèlerait les réseaux de relations dans lesquels s’inscrivent les médias et les journalistes. À ce titre, la place du lien dans le journalisme n'est pas forcément celle qui était prophétisée.

Il convient donc de l'examiner attentivement, pour mieux comprendre ce que les journalistes font des liens, et ce que le lien fait au journalisme. Cette recherche poursuit trois objectifs, et opère donc en trois temps :(1) appréhender le lien hypertexte dans l'imaginaire journalistique, (2) décrire les liens contenus sur les sites d'information de la presse francophone belge dans leur contexte d'énonciation, et (3) replacer les liens dans leur contexte de production.

Afin d'expliciter d'abord, du point de vue des acteurs eux-mêmes, la diversité des rôles que peut avoir le lien dans le contexte du journalisme, ce travail remonte le fil de conversations métajournalistiques au sujet du lien hypertexte. Sur le mode de la cartographie des controverses, celles-ci sont l’objet (1) d’un compte-rendu chronologique qui cherche à recontextualiser précisément chacune des controverses, puis, (2) d’une analyse thématique qui explicite tous les registres d'argument que les journalistes associent aux liens.

Ensuite, les liens hypertextes présents sur six sites web d’information d'organes de presse belge francophone sont décrits, dans leur contexte d’énonciation. Les résultats de l'analyse mettent en évidence que les sites d'information ne sont pas homogènes en matière de liens, chacun d'entre eux en faisant des usages spécifiques. Ils dévoilent également plusieurs pistes de questionnement sur les raisons d'être des liens, notamment sur le caractère structurant de la technique ou le caractère déterminant des enjeux économiques.

Enfin, tous ces éléments sont éclairés par une enquête sur le contexte de production des sites d'information. Une observation directe dans deux rédactions met en évidence les configurations spécifiques qui, en entremêlant la culture des journalistes, des inscriptions socio-techniques, et leurs relations avec les intérêts économiques de l'organisation médiatique, structurent l’usage journalistique des liens.

Au final, cette triple démarche aboutit à mettre en évidence que la configuration des interrelations qui caractérisent le journalisme (c'est-à-dire les relations entre les journalistes, leurs pairs, leurs sources, leurs publics, les produits d’information et la règle) se manifeste assez clairement dans les usages journalistiques du lien hypertexte. Mais elle montre aussi qu’il faut également tenir compte de la matérialité pour véritablement comprendre ce réseau d’interrelations.
Doctorat en Information et communication
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Le discours de promotion des technologies de l'information et de la communication (TIC) s'est traduit, entre autres, par une approche technocentriste du développement de la presse, faisant de l'usage de ces dispositifs techniques la norme universelle de tout progrès, dans ce secteur d'activité. Assisterait-on, aujourd'hui, à un nivellement des pratiques journalistiques, dans toutes les sociétés humaines, où les TIC auraient été introduites dans les activités de la presse ? Refusant de nous enfermer dans le carcan diffusionniste des techniques, nous avons orienté notre étude sur l'analyse de la relation entre la presse et ses publics, en la circonscrivant dans les procès de collecte et de traitement de l'information, au niveau de la presse congolaise. L'analyse révèle une inconciliabilité de perspectives, entre la promotion des TIC et le développement d'une presse évoluant dans un contexte de dépendance politique, où le champ de l'action politique se présente comme l'unique instance de construction sociale du sens. Ce contexte a induit un procès de médiatisation exclusive, consistant en la couverture quasi exclusive des opinions relevant de l'élite politique au pouvoir. Le déploiement de ce procès cristallise ainsi l'appropriation professionnelle des TIC autour des logiques sociales de la communication, où la construction de l'information de presse se conçoit comme une simple opération de valorisation de la parole de l'élite politique. Dès lors, la presse congolaise, évoluant dans un tel contexte, paraît encore inapte à toute forme d'innovation économique et professionnelle significative, que l'usage des TIC est censé accompagner. Ce constat contraste avec ce que l'on observe au niveau d'une presse française, par exemple, évoluant dans un contexte sociopolitique libéral, où les TIC accompagnent déjà des innovations organisationnelles et des pratiques journalistiques, qui se traduisent par la mobilisation des stratégies de coopétition, entre les médias dits " traditionnels " et les " nouveaux " acteurs de l'information et de la communication.

Le travail retrace l’évolution du métier de journaliste de presse écrite en République démocratique du Congo (RDC) et en Côte d’Ivoire, de la fin de la période coloniale à nos jours. Plus précisément, il s’attache à en comprendre l’émergence et la structuration progressive, à Léopoldville (devenue Kinshasa) et à Abidjan. L’objectif consiste à dégager les éléments qui ont modelé le métier dans les deux pays, pour mieux comprendre la forme qu’il emprunte aujourd’hui.

La recherche se fonde principalement sur l’exploitation d’une centaine d’entretiens menés pour la plupart à Kinshasa et à Abidjan, sur l’exploitation de corpus de presse et sur l’exploitation de ressources documentaires et bibliographiques. Elle adopte une perspective comparative visant à mettre en évidence les similitudes et les spécificités qui ont marqué l’évolution du journalisme de presse écrite en RDC et en Côte d’Ivoire.

Le travail se divise en quatre parties, dont les trois premières s’arrêtent sur des moments importants de la structuration de la profession. La première présente la façon dont les Congolais et les Ivoiriens se sont investis progressivement dans le journalisme de presse écrite, particulièrement à la fin de la période coloniale, dans un contexte de pluralisme limité. La deuxième étudie la pratique du journalisme et sa structuration, au Congo et en Côte d’Ivoire, durant le long règne des partis uniques. La troisième partie analyse la nouvelle forme que revêt la profession depuis la libéralisation politique et médiatique du début des années 1990. Pour chaque période, l’analyse comporte trois axes destinés à mettre en évidence les éléments utiles à la comparaison. Le premier permet de mettre au jour le système relationnel qui existe autour des journalistes congolais et ivoiriens de presse écrite, afin d’identifier les facteurs sociétaux qui influencent leur pratique. Le deuxième axe dévoile les dynamiques internes du groupe professionnel, dans les deux pays. Enfin, le troisième axe se construit autour des parcours individuels d’un certain nombre de journalistes, ce qui permet de cerner leurs motivations et leur perception du métier.

L’approche comparative constitue la quatrième partie de la recherche. Elle s’appuie sur le concept de « configuration » de Norbert Elias pour corréler les trois axes et les trois périodes décrits ci-dessus, pour penser l’émergence et l’évolution de la profession en termes de relations, d’interdépendances et de négociation.

L’imprécision des contours du groupe, des profils professionnels et des pratiques apparaît constitutive du journalisme de presse écrite, au Congo et en Côte d’Ivoire. La forme que revêt aujourd’hui la profession résulte d’une suite d’interdépendances, régulièrement renégociées, qui lie les journalistes aux autres acteurs au cours du temps./

The thesis traces the development of the profession of newspaper journalist in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Côte d’Ivoire, from the end of the colonial era until today. More precisely, it seeks to understand its emergence and structural development in Léopoldville (Kinshasa) and Abidjan. The objective is to identify the elements that fashioned the profession in both countries so as to better understand its current form.

The research rests chiefly on the use of about 100 interviews conducted for the most part in Kinshasa and Abidjan as well on the use of press corpuses and of documentary and bibliographic resources. The research takes a comparative approach that aims to highlight the similarities and specificities that have marked the evolution of newspaper journalism in the DRC and Côte d’Ivoire.

The thesis is divided into four parts, the first three of which concentrate on key moments in the profession’s structural growth. Part One outlines the way in which the Congolese and Ivorians gradually became involved in print journalism, in particular at the end of the colonial era, in a context where pluralism was limited. Part Two studies the practice of journalism and its structural elaboration, in the Congo and Côte d’Ivoire, under the long reign of the one-party systems. Part Three examines the new form assumed by the profession since the political and media liberalization of the early 1990s. For each period, the analysis relies on three axes destined to emphasize the elements that are useful for the comparison. The first axis makes it possible to reveal the network of relations existing around Congolese and Ivorian newspaper journalists in order to identify the societal factors influencing their practice. The second axis sheds light on the professional body’s internal dynamics in the two countries. Lastly, the third axis centres on the individual careers of a number of journalists, making it possible to grasp their professional motivations and their perception of the sector.

The comparative approach composes the fourth part of the thesis. It relies on Norbert Elias’s notion of ‘configuration’ to correlate the three axes and periods described above in order to examine the profession’s emergence and evolution in terms of relations, interdependencies and negotiations.

The vagueness of the group’s contours, of the professional profiles and of the practices appears constitutive of newspaper journalism in the Congo and Côte d’Ivoire. The profession’s current form is the result of a succession of interdependencies, regularly renegotiated, that has linked the journalists to other actors over the course of time.

Doctorat en Information et communication
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished