Suchergebnisse

Over the past years, it has often been stated that the traditional function of journalism will erode with the advance of the `information society'. Direct news supply by satellite television and computer networks, the explosion of information and the increasing communication autonomy of citizens, less public service and more commercial exploitation of media all suggest that critical journalism is becoming redundant. This article gives an overview of the relevant developments and discussions on the topic, and defends the thesis that because of the increasing individualization and segmentation in communication such notions as `community' and `public debate' should be taken less for granted. Therefore the traditional task of journalism will shift from collecting information to directing the social flow of information and public debate. Next to this `orientating journalism', the new media offer scope for `instrumental journalism'.

In den letzten Jahren ist schon oft die Feststellung getroffen worden, daß sich die traditionellen Funktionen des Journalismus mit der fortschreitenden Entwicklung hin zur "Informationsgesellschaft" gleichsam auflösen werden. Zu den Rahmenbedinungen, die nahelegen, daß kritischer Journalismus zunehmend redundant wird, gehören die direkte Versorgung mit Nachrichten durch Satellitenfernsehen und Computernetzwerke, die sog. "Informationsexplosion", eine wachsende kommunikative Autonomie der Bürger sowie die Kommerzialisierung der Medien zu Lasten ihrer öffentlichen Dienstleistungsfunktion. Der Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über die einschlägigen Entwicklungen und den Diskussionsstand zum Thema und stellt die These auf, daß die wachsende Individualisierung und Segmentierung von Kommunikation Vorstellungen wie "Gemeinschaft" oder "Öffentlichkeit" nicht mehr als selbstverständlich erscheinen lassen. Der Arbeitsschwerpunkt des traditionellen Journalismus wird sich vom Informationssammeln hin zur Lenkung des sozialen Informationsflusses und der damit verbundenen öffentlichen Debatte verlagern. Neben diesem "Orientierungsjournalismus" bieten die neuen Medien auch Spielraum für einen sog. "instrumentellen Journalismus". (UNübers.)

The suicide of David Kelly in the UK, following revelations by the BBC of questionable treatment by the government with regard to information on Iraq, and the killing of Pim Fortuyn in the Netherlands, after intensive TV election coverage was criticized for 'demonizing' the populist politician, have resulted in comparable public outcries and political indignation. Both cases led to a crisis in trust and in similar demands for new arrangements visa-vis the responsibility and accountability of public broadcasting. The actual outcomes, however, differ considerably: a strong (self) regulatory reaction in the UK and a limited government response in the Netherlands.

Der Selbstmord von David Kelly in Großbritannien nach Enthüllungen der BBC über fragwürdige Behandlung durch die Regierung im Zusammenhng mit Informationen über den Irak und der Mord an Pim Fortuyn in den Niederlanden nachdem die intensive Wahlberichterstatung im Fernsehen dafür kritisiert worden war, den populistischen Politiker zu "dämonisieren", haben einen vergleichbaren öffentlichen Aufschrei und vergleichbare politische Empörung ausgelöst. Beide Fälle führten zu einer Vertrauenskrise und zu ähnlichen Forderungen nach neuen Regelungen angesichts der Verantwortung und der Verantwortlichkeit des öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunks. Die aktuellen Ergebnisse unterscheiden sich jedoch erheblich: als Reaktion eine strenge (Selbst-)Kontrolle in Großbritannien und ein eingeschränkte Antwort der Regierung in den Niederlanden. (UNübers.) (UN)

Structural changes in the media world, including an increase in competition and commercialization, mean that the topicality and urgency of the notion of social responsibility in the media are increasing. Analogously, the discussion of the social responsibility of companies and organizations becomes a central concern in the business world and within government, as the relatively new concept of 'good governance' shows. In recent years we have seen that the absolute belief in the free market is once again under debate. Rather than a return to a controlling government as the main provider of a context in the complex 'ecology' of communication policy, possible solutions are now sought in greater responsibility for the media actors themselves (media companies and organizations, citizens, supervisory boards and commissions) and in self-regulation in the media profession. This article assesses accountability mechanisms currently in existence in the Netherlands and provides a comparative overview of interesting practices in other geographical contexts. This contribution also examines the academic reflection upon and conceptualization of such notions as social 'responsibility' and media 'accountability' in the division of labour throughout the market, the government and civil society. We are thinking of mechanisms for accountability such as a contract between the government and the broadcasters, an ombudsperson, forms of self-regulation, supervisory bodies, forms of public consultation, and the profession seeking contact with the citizens (e.g. civic journalism).

The impact of the Internet and other new information- and communication technologies on the profession of journalism should not be underestimated. The Internet is changing the profession of journalism in at least three ways: it has the potential to make the journalist as an intermediary force in democracy superfluous (Bardoel, 1996); it offers the media professional a vast array of resources and sheer endless technological possibilities to work with (Quinn, 1998; Pavlik, 1999); and it creates its own type of journalism on the Net: so-called digital or rather: online journalism (Singer, 1998; Deuze, 1999). This paper will take the developments in journalism on the Internet as the starting point for a discussion about the changing face of journalism in general. The key characteristics of journalism on the Net - convergence, interactivity, customisation of content and hypertextuality - put together with the widespread use and availability of new technological 'tools of the trade' are putting all genres and types of journalism to the test. The outcome seems to suggest a turn towards what the authors of this article call 'network journalism'; the convergence between the core competences and functions of journalists and the civic potential of online journalism.

Over the past decade media and journalistic performance in many liberal democracies has come under criticism, increasingly leading to a waning trust among politicians and the public. Based on a triangulation of methods this article attempts to obtain a better understanding of the themes and underlying discourse in this critique and how media and journalists responded to the subsequent pressures on their performance in terms of accountability and responsiveness over a period of 20 years in the Netherlands.