Professional journalistic television production adheres to norms established by traditional media. These norms can be identified via certain types of indicators as listed below. The project examines how alternative media relate to these norms. Our empirical material is the discussion program Morgongänget on the Swedish internet TV channel Riks. We will describe and evaluate its media design in detail, that means, technical aspects and production features such as camera positions, rhetorical means (including language and gestures), sound, dramaturgy, interaction between the participants and its music intro. Two different approaches will be employed in order to get a grip on the profile of this program: First, we will randomly choose some broadcasts for establishing patterns and typical design features of this program. Second, we will compare this alternative morning show with a morning show on a Swedish mainstream channel. For this juxtaposition, we will choose programs that were broadcast on the same day. Through this comparison we will be able to highlight differences and similarities between the designs of both programs. In addition to the technical features, we will evaluate and scrutinize whether and how the program Morgongänget sticks to professional journalistic ethical rules and standards such as truth, honesty, fairness, accuracy, objectivity and non-partisanship. What sets of narratives, expressions, beliefs and stereotypes are used in this type of alternative media format and do these differ from corresponding programs in a public service concept?

Despite boasting strong performance in global democracy rankings, Sweden grapples with impending challenges to its democratic fabric (Lührmann et al., 2019). The escalating prevalence of disinformation within an increasingly polarized media landscape has gained notable attention, spurring a proliferation of research studies and fact-checking initiatives to fortify the democratic society against such threats (Bakir & McStay, 2017; Holt, 2019; Waisbord, 2018; Allcott & Gentzkow, 2021). Simultaneously, young adults (18–25 years) seem to be progressively distancing themselves from conventional news outlets, choosing instead platforms where emotional narratives reign supreme and adherence to journalistic standards is not necessarily a given (Newman et al. 2023). Given the divergent media consumption patterns of young citizens compared to older generations (Boczkowski et al., 2018; Newman et al., 2020), it is crucial to understand this demographic’s conception of news quality. Moreover, the disinformation conundrum is intrinsically linked with contemporary research on democratic innovation, the evolution of representative democracy, and the enhancement of civic practices and forums (Norris, 2011). The challenge of integrating the younger generation into these discussions is a pivotal concern in this discourseThis paper investigates how young citizens construe quality of news and the factors that influence their perceptions of news quality. Despite the abundance of news sources available, young citizens may struggle to distinguish between high-quality news and misinformation. Through qualitative interviews with young citizens (ages 18–25), combined with analysis of biometric lab data (eye-tracking and GSR), we explore the interplay between actual and measurable reactions to pieces of news and stated quality assessments, highlighting key factors that shape their perceptions of news quality, including trust and source credibility, relevance, and format. We find that these factors interact, at times paradoxically, with one another to influence young citizens’ judgments about the quality of news. Our results show that news items that cause more emotional engagement are not necessarily ranked higher in quality than less engaging news items. Our results have implications for news organizations and media literacy education programs, and we suggest areas for future research on news consumption and young citizens.

Syftet med projektet Young citizens and the quality of news: Construals, Emotions and Strategies har varit att utforska nya sätt att undersöka hur unga betraktar nyheter, hur de interagerar med nyhetsinnehåll och hur känsloreaktioner inverkar på bedömningen av kvalitet. 

Studien är gjord med hjälp av ett flertal metoder, både kvantitativa, kvalitativa och laborativa. Genom att be unga mellan 18 och 25 år att själva leta upp nyheter på sin mobil och samtidigt mäta deras ögonrörelser, genom att visa dem ett antal nyhetsklipp och mäta deras reaktioner samt genom att göra djupintervjuer med de unga om vad de sett och hur de upplevt det, har forskargruppen kunnat dra flera slutsatser kring hur unga definierar och reagerar på nyheter. 

Nu finns rapporten som sammanfattar projektet att läsa och ladda ner på Medier & demokratis hemsida. 

Studien visar bland annat att kvalitet för unga mediekonsumenter är intimt sammankopplat med upplevd relevans och att nyheters förmåga att beröra emotionellt beskrivs som väldigt viktigt för hur de unga i studien bedömer kvalitet. Hur de unga gör för att hitta nyheter varierar, men ett tydligt mönster bland studiens deltagare är att de föredrar textbaserade nyhetsartiklar. 

I rapporten ger forskarna flera tips på vad redaktioner bör göra för att lyckas nå de unga läsarna. 

The chapter addresses how the journalistic genre transmedia journalism (TMJ) can be implemented into news media outlets' workflows, and suggests a tentative model for TMJ in news rooms. The model considers participatory culture and focuses on story expanding multi-platform publishing using various content formats preferred by the audience and includes news evaluation, content production and distribution. It also suggests that traditional journalistic skills and methods could be complemented by competences from outside the newsroom. It aims at refining storytelling to increase the audience's sense of participation, identification and engagement, thus contributing to new ways of generating income for news media outlets. It could assist news journalism in strengthening its position as a major part of audiences' daily media rituals, and thus contribute to an unbiased, professional, informative, critical, relevant and democratization-favoring journalism.

Young adult citizens (18-30 years) tend to turn away from traditional news media and migrate to media where emotions occupy a more central place and where journalistic standards are not self-evident, thus challenging public discourse and the notion of quality associated with established news media (Schwaiger et al., 2022; Backholm et al., 2021; Baek et al., 2019; Berthelsen & Hameleers, 2021). In this paper, we test possibilities of investigating how young adult citizens construe (perceive, comprehend and interpret) and experience quality of news content in a high choice, hybrid media landscape (Chadwick et al., 2015), characterized by multimodal and intermedial possibilities offered in social media (Holt & Schirrmacher, 2021). In particular, we explore if there is a possible link between emotional reactions to news items, and subsequent quality rating. In media and journalism research, the importance of emotions evoked by news-content has been pointed out in recent years (Wahl-Jørgensen, 2020). Researchers have studied emotional aspects of different types of content (e. g. Uribe & Gunter, 2007), polarization (e. g. Marozzo & Bessi, 2017), and affective responses to political messages (Bakker et al., 2021). Lacking is, however, in depth analysis of how emotional reactions to news might interact with quality assessments. Since young citizens differ from older generations in media use (Boczkowski et al., 2018), it is especially important to understand the notion of quality from the perspective of this age group. Here, biometric data offer promising possibilities, since it allows for measuring emotional response as well as eye-movments during exposure to news. At the same time, methodology for journalism scholars is still at a developmental stage. Therefore, in this paper we present the results from a small-sample pilot study, using GSR and eye-tracking in combination with semi-structured interviews with young citizens about quality in news. Our findings are discussed in relation to the usability of this methodological approach and suggestions for further research are presented.

While today’s press is undergoing change, intersecting regions, it is important not to overlook the readers – who is the local “us”? This paper investigates how readers generate the relational sense of an “us” in a locality by engaging with the press. The study offers a framework built around three key dynamic concepts: proximity, feelings of closeness, and shared interests – which readers form clusters around, thereby reinforcing the notion of an “us.” Furthermore, local journalists strengthen the notion of an “us” by addressing the readers as a single collective with common features.