Hyperlocal Journalism by David Harte Rachel Howells Andy Williams

Author:David Harte, Rachel Howells, Andy Williams [David Harte, Rachel Howells, Andy Williams]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, Media Studies
ISBN: 9781317200765
Google: aQxjDwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2018-07-04T04:44:34+00:00

FIGURE 4.2 Geographic spread of UK hyperlocals, 2012

Hyperlocal news – what gets covered?

Drawing on the data produced during the sample period in 2012, we selected a sample of posts with which to carry out a content analysis. During this period, 3,819 posts were published on 313 active websites, and we coded every other story (odd numbers) on each site, a total of 1,941 posts. Our content analysis paid particular attention to: sources (who gets to define hyperlocal news?); topics (what news is covered?); the ‘localness’ of this news; and the civic value of the news (principally, here, in relation to coverage of politics). In order to better understand aspects of hyperlocal news coverage, we draw on a survey and semi-structured interviews with hyperlocal news publishers. These interviews, 42 in total, are drawn on throughout this book. In broad terms their hyperlocal operations could be said to fit within definitions put forward by Radcliffe (2012) and Metzgar et al. (2011), and in all cases they were active and publishing regularly at the time of interview. They represent a wide range of organisational set-ups. That is to say, some were operating not-for-profit, some were developing a business, and some were more in the guise of personal bloggers than journalists. In this chapter we hear from these practitioners about sourcing strategies, opinions of and relations with local mainstream media outlets, and examples of campaigning, critical and investigative hyperlocal journalism.

In terms of the topics covered by hyperlocal publishers (see Figure 4.3), we found that the largest category of news in the sample related to local community activities (13 per cent). This is, on the whole, a very geographically focused, community-oriented journalistic form. This category includes stories about local non-political civil society groups (e.g. the Women’s Institute, community groups, local clubs and societies) as well as stories about community events like local festivals.

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