Vol. 7 No. 1 (2024)

Open Access

Articles

Article ID: 670

The timeliness of constructionist theory in the process of journalistic content production in the digital age

by Cantífula de Castro, Bruno F. Gonçalves

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 58 Views, 30 PDF Downloads

This research explores the relevance of constructionist theory in the production of journalistic content in the digital age. Constructionist theory posits that reality is socially constructed and shaped by the discursive practices of the media, gaining significance within a media landscape profoundly transformed by digitization, the proliferation of social networks, and the use of algorithms. The investigation employs a qualitative methodology, utilizing a systematic literature review of publications from 2013 to 2023, aiming to map the principal theoretical and empirical approaches that discuss the impact of new technologies and communicative practices on contemporary journalism. The findings indicate that the digital era has intensified the constructionist nature of news production, given the multiplicity of voices and agents involved in the mediation process, including an actively participating public in the creation and dissemination of content. It was further observed that digital platforms, by personalizing news consumption through algorithms, create fragmented realities and filter bubbles, challenging the notion of a shared news reality. Moreover, the emergence of misinformation and “fake news” underscores the importance of a constructionist approach to understanding how news narratives are continuously negotiated and reconstructed. It is concluded that constructionist theory remains a valid analytical framework for understanding the dynamics of journalistic production in the digital age, particularly in a context where the boundaries between news producers and consumers have become increasingly fluid.

Open Access

Articles

Article ID: 668

Impact of news consumption on social media during the 2024 electoral campaign in Mozambique

by Domingos Getimane, Rui Paulino Taula, Bruno Miguel Ferreira Gonçalves

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 49 Views, 34 PDF Downloads

This scientific article discusses the consumption of news about the electoral campaign on social networks during the campaign period in Mozambique in 2024. The research was carried out on an exploratory basis, where the issue of news consumption on digital platforms was analyzed based on a bibliographical review of authors in the field, with some incidence of the approach defended by Stuart Hall’s theory of encoding and decoding. This study investigated how different social networks impact on voter interest and the circulation of information. The results reveal a significant relationship of trust in private media and information organizations, which use Facebook to access digital media and WhatsApp to disseminate and share news. Finally, it is important to note that the results achieved had the participation of 160 respondents, all of them Mozambican nationals.

Open Access

Articles

Article ID: 674

Framing in media and communication studies: A bibliometric analysis

by Qijun Song

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 77 Views, 38 PDF Downloads

This paper presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of framing and frame theory in media and communication studies, utilizing Web of Science (WOS) data from 2014 to 2023. Framing, as a critical concept in media discourse, shapes public perception by highlighting specific aspects of information while downplaying others. Despite its central role in political communication, news framing, and social media research, there is a notable gap in better incorporating linguistic perspectives, particularly metaphor framing, within the existing literature. Using VOSviewer, this study analyzes co-occurrence networks and thematic clusters to map the evolving landscape of framing research. The results reveal key areas of focus, including political communication, science communication, and identity politics on social media platforms, while also highlighting the underrepresentation of linguistic approaches. This analysis not only identifies influential authors and institutions but also underscores the need for further integrating cognitive linguistic theories, such as metaphor framing, to deepen our understanding of how media discourse constructs reality. The paper concludes by suggesting directions for future research, calling for more interdisciplinary studies to explore the complex mechanisms underlying media framing.

Open Access

Articles

Article ID: 669

The strategic role of integrated marketing communication in building brand value

by Amália Celina Fenias Cutane Comiche, Bruno Miguel Ferreira Gonçalves

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 65 Views, 30 PDF Downloads

The research, guided by an essential question about the optimization of Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) in the face of current challenges in communication and marketing, focused on studying the active role of this strategy in promoting brand value. The main objectives were to analyze the active role of IMC in consumer perception of brand value and to examine its contribution to strengthening brands. To achieve these objectives, we used bibliographical research with a qualitative approach based on a critical analysis of the literature already published in articles, journals, and books. The results of the research showed the crucial importance of coherence and consistency in the brand message as determining factors for the success of CIM. The continuous adaptation of CIM to changing consumer preferences and market dynamics has become a key strategy for companies. CIM has also proven to be a powerful tool for creating authentic narratives and delivering consistent experiences. Finally, the research concluded that the strategic management of CIM, anchored in an in-depth understanding of brand identity, is crucial to establishing lasting emotional connections with consumers, thus boosting brand value.

Open Access

Articles

Article ID: 664

Analyzing the Chinese public attention to the COVID-19 pandemic using Sina Weibo, a microblogging website

by Shuai Teng, Jinping Xu, Xiaodong Sun, Fangxin Yu, Yuting Hao

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 24 Views, 6 PDF Downloads

The outbreak of COVID-19 in China captured the attention of the whole country. People used social media to search for information about the pandemic and to publish their own thoughts. To explore people’s knowledge and feelings about COVID-19, this study used Python to crawl popular microblogs with the keyword ‘new coronavirus pneumonia’ between 21 January 2020 and 18 March 2020 and analyzed the sentiment tendency using ROST CM6 on the popular microblogging platform, Sina Weibo. The study used Python to capture a total of 34,585 popular microblogs over 58 days, including usernames, number of comments, number of retweets, and contents. The results showed the following: 1) The public consistently paid close attention to the COVID-19 pandemic; 2) Throughout the pandemic, high-frequency words at different stages have partially changed; 3) People generally held a negative view of the pandemic, although performance tended toward a positive change; 4) The number of highly interactive microblogs released by the media is much higher than those of other bloggers, and the total number of reposts and comments on highly interactive microblogs released by the official media was much higher than that of ordinary media. The results of our study demonstrate that the media, especially the official media, played a vital role in broadcasting pandemic information, while the government microblog (which is also the official source of information) played a minimal role. Therefore, further research should focus on persuading government microblogs to communicate more effectively during a pandemic.

Open Access

Articles

Article ID: 694

Creation of a polylingual teacher’s personal brand in teaching foreign languages through social media channels

by Elizaveta Denisovna Korableva

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 18 Views, 4 PDF Downloads

Social media platforms have gradually changed the users’ perception of their functions. Communication between users has transformed into a global trend to acquire new knowledge and find educators to fulfill the users’ requests. The presence of polylingual teachers in a social media landscape requires specific preparation of accounts to share the ability to speak and teach several languages. This paper aims to describe the set of competencies of a polylingual teacher displayed through social media channels that create a personal brand in teaching foreign languages. Personal brand is a process of creation and promotion of unique individual characteristics to be shared with the target audience. Methods used in this research include comparative analysis and method of logical inference of relevant scientific literature published over the past 5 years on this topic and 52 social media accounts of polylingual educators. This allowed us to identify sub-competences (communicative, general cultural, psychological, pedagogical) of a teacher and the content algorithm (personal information, experience as a learner, cultural corner, driving forces of learning foreign languages, teaching methods and aids, further actions) in which sub-competences, forming a personal brand, are distributed in social media channels. The practical implication of the paper focuses on the structured representation of the individual through the content division of an account to attract new subscribers as well as online and face-to-face clients for learning several languages. The value of the study lies in its ability to show a teacher’s philosophy, education, backstage of a teaching process and learners’ results to obtain new students in conditions of a private school sector.

Open Access

Articles

Article ID: 690

I’m telling you what’s best for you: A comparative study of the speech act of suggestion in e-commerce live streaming between male and female streamers A Comparative Study of the Speech Act of Suggestion in E-commerce Live-streaming between Male and Female Hosts

by Xin Li, Qi Zhang

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 17 Views, 13 PDF Downloads

E-commerce live streaming has developed rapidly in recent years. The pragmatic strategy of e-commerce streamers is an important factor affecting sales. This study explores gender-specific pragmatic strategies in the speech act of suggestion by analyzing the discourse of the top ten male and female Taobao anchors during the Double Eleven Event, a promotional festival in China. With the help of corpus tools, based on Eden Sum-hung Li’s pragmatic strategy model of the speech act of suggestion, this study conducts a comparative analysis of the above discourse. The study finds that at the level of perspective, both male and female streamers use hearer-dominance suggestions most, followed by the speaker-dominance one. The difference is that male streamers use the speaker-dominance strategy more frequently than female streamers. At the level of directness, male and female streamers vary greatly in strategy distribution. Female streamers use the three strategies with similar frequency, while male streamers mainly use conventionally indirect suggestions and less non-conventionally indirect suggestions. At the level of politeness, both male and female streamers use more internal redressive actions and relatively fewer external ones. However, female streamers employ suggestions without redressive actions more frequently than male streamers in discourse. The above phenomenon can be explained by three reasons: features of the e-commerce live streaming format, gender of the streamers, and the audience. Specifically, the cross-screen communication method and fast pace of e-commerce live broadcasts raise requirements for the type of suggestions. The gender difference leads to different relationship positioning between the streamers and the audience, which affects the selection and use of male and female streamers’ pragmatic strategies of the speech act of suggestion.

Open Access

Opinions

Article ID: 655

Digital transformation in journalism: Navigating big data governance and ethical challenges

by Xinyang Li, Kunpeng Sun

Insight - News Media, Vol.7, No.1, 2024; 40 Views, 20 PDF Downloads

Digital transformation is reshaping journalism, driven by advancements in big data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and digital platforms. These technologies offer new opportunities for dynamic storytelling, audience engagement, and content personalization. However, they also present challenges related to data governance, privacy, and ethical standards. As news organizations increasingly rely on data-driven practices, they must navigate complex regulatory landscapes and address ethical dilemmas to maintain credibility and public trust. This paper proposes an integrated framework combining big data governance with journalistic ethics and examines empirical case studies of leading news organizations to illustrate the key challenges and strategies for ensuring responsible and effective use of data.