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Hyb id Engagemen : Discou ses and Scena ios o En ep eneu ial Jou nalism
© 2018 by he Au ho s; licensee Cogi a io (Lisbon, Po ugal).
Published e sion
Ruo salainen, Juho; Villi, Mikko
Ruo salainen, J., & Villi, M. (2018). Hyb id Engagemen : Discou ses and Scena ios o
En ep eneu ial Jou nalism. Media and Communica ion, 6(4), 79-90.
h ps://doi.o g/10.17645/mac. 6i4.1465
2018
Media and Communica ion (ISSN: 2183–2439)
2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90
DOI: 10.17645/mac. 6i4.1465
A icle
Hyb id Engagemen : Discou ses and Scena ios o
En ep eneu ial Jou nalism
Juho Ruo salainen 1,* and Mikko Villi 2
1Finland Fu u es Resea ch Cen e, Uni e si y o Tu ku, 00130 Helsinki, Finland; E-Mail: juho. uo salainen@u u. i
2Depa men o Language and Communica ion S udies, Uni e si y o Jy äskylä, 40014 Jy äskylä, Finland;
E-Mail: mikko. illi@jyu. i
* Co esponding au ho
Submi ed: 7 Ma ch 2018 | Accep ed: 24 May 2018 | Published: 8 No embe 2018
Abs ac
Al hough he challenge posed by social media and he pa icipa o y u n conce ns cul u e and alues a he e y hea
o jou nalism, jou nalis s ha e been eluc an o adop pa icipa o y alues and p ac ices. To encou age audience pa ic-
ipa ion and o o e jou nalism ha is bo h us wo hy and engaging, jou nalis s o he u u e may emb ace a hyb id
p ac ice o jou nalis ic objec i i y and audience-cen ed dialogue. As inno a i e and expe imen al ac o s, en ep eneu ial
jou nalism ou le s can pe o m as o e unne s o such a cul u e. By analysing discou ses in he “Abou Us” pages o 41 en-
ep eneu ial jou nalism ou le s, he a icle examines he eme ging jou nalis ic e hos o en ep eneu ial jou nalism and i s
pa icipa o y endencies. The esul s show a concep ion o jou nalism ha is a hyb id o he jou nalis ic ideals o dialogue
and objec i i y. This kind o hyb id jou nalism and adjacen “hyb id engagemen ” can o e an answe o he dual challenge
o how o make jou nalism mo e pa icipa ion- iendly while a he same ime hold on o he de ining alues and c i e ia
o jou nalism. D awing om u u es esea ch, he a icle concludes by ske ching ou scena ios o how en ep eneu ial
jou nalism and pa icipa o y hyb id engagemen may de elop in he u u e.
Keywo ds
a ec ; discou se analysis; en ep eneu ial jou nalism; u u es esea ch; u u e o jou nalism; hyb id jou nalism;
pa icipa o y jou nalism; scena ios
Issue
This a icle is pa o he issue “News and Pa icipa ion h ough and beyond P op ie a y Pla o ms in an Age o Social
Media”, edi ed by Osca Wes lund and Ma s Eks öm (Uni e si y o Go henbu g, Sweden).
© 2018 by he au ho s; licensee Cogi a io (Lisbon, Po ugal). This a icle is licensed unde a C ea i e Commons A ibu-
ion 4.0 In e na ional License (CC BY).
1. In oduc ion
F om he beginning o he millennium media and jou nal-
ism ha e inc easingly been cha ac e ised by a pa icipa-
o y u n. Audiences ha e in a ious ways aken a cen-
al s age, by bo h con ibu ing o he p oduc ion and
dis ibu ion o jou nalism and shaping i s cul u al land-
scape (Gillmo , 2004; Villi, 2012). Jou nalis s ha e o en
been eluc an o emb ace he u n as he new audience-
cen ed ideals “do no mesh well wi h he adi ional
jou nalis ic cul u e” (G aham, 2013, p. 116). In he ne -
wo ked e a o social pla o ms, “in ima e” mobile ech-
nology and inc easingly a ec i e and pa icipa o y o ms
o communica ion, jou nalism aces a dual challenge:
how o inc ease audience engagemen ―b oadly de ined
as a pe sonal connec ion he audiences ha e wi h he
news—and pa icipa ion, while p ese ing he co e c i-
e ia and alues ha de ine jou nalism (Becke & Deuze,
2016). A common a gumen is ha jou nalism needs o
connec wi h ci izens’ li es and iden i ies be e han be-
o e (Ha e al., 2018; Swa , Pe e s, & B oe sma, 2017).
While pa icipa o y jou nalism is o en de ined as
news con en p oduced by non-p o essionals (Wall,
2015), his a icle add esses pa icipa o y jou nalism
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 79
mo e b oadly, in e ms o eme ging jou nalis ic cul u e,
alues and ac o s. The concep ual amewo k o he a -
icle consis s o en ep eneu ial jou nalism and hyb id
jou nalism. We de ine en ep eneu ial jou nalism as one
ha 1) is p oduced by new media ou le s es ablished
by jou nalis s hemsel es, 2) e lec s he pe sonali ies,
goals and isions o he ounde s, 3) seeks o enew jou -
nalism by add essing new niches, explo ing new s yles
and o ma s, and building a new ela ionship wi h he au-
diences, and 4) pu sues a sus ainable business based on
hese a ibu es.
En ep eneu ial jou nalis s pionee hyb id jou nal-
ism (see Wagemans, Wi schge, & Ha be s, 2018), which
me ges he dialogical and objec i e adi ions o jou nal-
ism (So e , 2009) and is mani es ed in such “hyb id” gen-
es as pa icipa o y jou nalism. Hyb id jou nalism o e s
one solu ion o he po en ially con adic ing ideals o en-
gagemen and objec i i y. I a guably sui s social media
pla o ms wi h hei con e sa ional and a ec i e egis-
e s be e han he adi ional, de ached ype o jou nal-
ism, and po en ially makes jou nalism mo e a ac i e o
audience pa icipa ion.
Hyb id jou nalism can in oke hyb id engagemen ,
which appeals o bo h a ional and a ec i e sen imen s
in he audience. In he same way as hyb id jou nalism
mixes objec i e- a ional and dialogical-a ec i e aspec s
in epo ing, he in oked hyb id engagemen mixes a io-
nal and a ec i e aspec s o engagemen (Ko melink &
Meije , 2015) in a balanced way. Ra ional engagemen is
used he e o e e o ac ual in o ma ion and he eeling
o us i in okes (Newman, Fle che , Kaloge opoulos,
Le y, & Nielsen, 2017), and a ec i e engagemen e e s
o a pe sonal, emo ional connec ion wi h news con en .
Con en p oduced by new media playe s a e o en a -
ec i e and seek o engage he use on a pe sonal le el
(Papacha issi, 2015), which ques ions adi ional no ma-
i e claims o wha jou nalism should be like and how
i should add ess and appeal o i s audiences. Acco d-
ing o Singe (2017a, p. 131), en ep eneu ial jou nalis s
“ e isi wha o en a e deeply held iews abou wha
jou nalism is, should be and migh become”. Such dis-
sen ing app oaches place en ep eneu ial jou nalis s in
a good posi ion o pionee possible u u es o jou nal-
ism (Ruo salainen, in p ess). Pa icipa o y and in e ac i e
audience ela ionships a e o en buil -in as a pa o en-
ep eneu ial jou nalism, as en ep eneu s ha e o know
hei cus ome s and hei needs e y closely (Siape a &
Papadopoulou, 2016).
Acco ding o Singe (2017b), en ep eneu ial
jou nalis s— hei concep ions abou jou nalism as well
as he ac ual jou nalism hey p oduce—ha e been s ud-
ied ela i ely li le. Thus, his a icle makes a needed
con ibu ion o he discussion on wha cons i u es he
ideas, app oaches and alues o en ep eneu ial jou nal-
ism. Fu he mo e, en ep eneu ial jou nalism is s udied
in ela ion o hyb id jou nalism, cla i ying wha hyb id
news jou nalism could be like in p ac ice and how i
may e ol e in he u u e. The main esea ch ques ion
in he a icle concen a es on examining how he e hos
o en ep eneu ial jou nalism e lec s hyb id jou nalism,
hyb id engagemen , and a mo e pa icipa ion-o ien ed
jou nalis ic cul u e.
The a icle analyses discou ses in he 41 “Abou us”
pages o en ep eneu ial jou nalism ou le s om No h
Ame ica and Eu ope. Building on he analysis, he a icle
cons uc s ou scena io ske ches o he de elopmen
o en ep eneu ial and hyb id jou nalism. The scena io
ske ches a e no p edic ions, as he p obabili y o any
scena io e e being ealized accu a ely is low (Go don
& Glenn, 2018). Thei pu pose, ins ead, is o open up
he space o al e na i e possibili ies in he de elopmen
o en ep eneu ial jou nalism. While Vos and Singe
(2016) ha e analysed discou ses o en ep eneu ial jou -
nalism in ade and popula p ess, his a icle analyses
he discou ses used by en ep eneu ial jou nalism ou -
le s hemsel es.
The nex sec ion add esses and elabo a es on he
end owa ds hyb idi y in jou nalism, analyses some
u u e-shaping ends ela ed o audience engagemen ,
and p esen s en ep eneu ial jou nalis s as pionee s o
hyb id jou nalism. A sho e iew on en ep eneu ial
jou nalism is o e ed in sec ion 3. Sec ion 4 p esen s he
esul s om he analysis o he “Abou us” pages. The
esul s a e elabo a ed as scena io ske ches in sec ion 5,
and in he conclusions, he idea o hyb id engagemen is
e lec ed upon o each scena io.
2. The Hyb idiza ion o Jou nalism
The media sys ems o wes e n democ acies ha e be-
come hyb ids o adi ional and social media: con en
on online pla o ms is collec i ely p oduced and sha ed
by jou nalis s, ci izens, blogge s, and ac i is s (Chad-
wick, 2013). As jou nalism is inc easingly dis ibu ed on
hese pla o ms, he ques ion o how o combine pub-
lic wi h pe sonal communica ion in jou nalism becomes
pi o al—news needs o become mo e engaging han be-
o e. In his a icle, engagemen is de ined as a ec ual,
pe sonal and social expe iences he audience has wi h
a publica ion and i s con en s (Me sey, Mal house, &
Calde , 2010).
In such a hyb id sys em, he a ionali y o adi ional
media and he a ec uali y o social media a e blended
(Laaksonen, 2017)—in e ec , “dicho omies such as pub-
lic/p i a e, en e ainmen /poli ics, wo k/leisu e become
blended, and pe sonal and poli ical become in e wined”
(Laaksonen, 2017, p. 12). A ec e e s o bo h subjec-
i ely expe ienced emo ion and in e subjec i e expe i-
ences (Papacha issi, 2015). As embodied social mean-
ings, a ec s cons i u e a sha ed li e-wo ld ha “makes
sense” and is expe ienced as meaning ul (Langlois, 2014).
A sha ed li e-wo ld be ween a media ou le and i s audi-
ence is a c ucial p e equisi e o audience engagemen
and pa icipa ion. In he hyb id media ecology o a ec-
i e news s eams, audiences need o ind news con-
en as pe sonally meaning ul i hey a e o consume,
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 80
sha e, and commen on i (Papacha issi, 2015), and so
jou nalism has o ind new, a ec i e ways o epo ing
and connec ing wi h he audiences’ iden i ies i i is o
s ay ele an .
Hyb idi y e lec s a b oade socio-poli ical en i on-
men in which ma e s o pe sonal in e es ela ed o
iden i y a e emphasised in public li e—i.e., “iden i y poli-
ics” (Lilla, 2017). Al hough iden i y poli ics canno be al-
oge he educed o social media, he heigh ened ole o
iden i y is a s uc u al ea u e o he cu en media ecol-
ogy. Van Dijck and Poell (2013) desc ibe a social media
logic ha in di e en ways in ensi ies and in e ac s wi h
use s’ (ne wo ked) iden i ies. A pe son’s iden i y and pe -
sonal ele ance ha e become co e il e mechanisms in
news consump ion (E eland & Dunwoody, 2002), and so-
cial media also s ee poli ical ac ion o iden i y-d i en
s a egies as hey “enable pe sonalized public engage-
men ” (Benne & Sege be g, 2012, p. 739). Fu he mo e,
Wes e n socie ies ha e o decades al eady been exhibi -
ing pos ma e ialis alues o in ellec ual, aes he ic, sel -
exp essi e, and humani a ian pu sui s (Ingleha , 1977).
In a pos -ma e ialis wo ld, ci izens’ iden i ies a e inc eas-
ingly cons uc ed in ne wo ked communica ion ins ead
o economic p oduc ion (Lash, 1994).
Some o he ends, oo, hin a new di ec ions o en-
gagemen . On social media, audience us is o en de-
e mined by who sha es he con en o hem, ins ead
o he news o ganisa ion ha p oduced he con en
(The Media Insigh P ojec , 2017), s ee ing powe away
om news o ganisa ions o audience communi ies (Villi
& Jung, 2015). Mo eo e , g ow h in online audience e -
enue is compensa ing o he dec ease in ad e ising e -
enue (WAN-IFRA, 2017). New paymen models a e o -
en membe ship-like (Newman e al., 2017), implying
a close ela ionship be ween news o ganisa ions and
hei audiences. Finally, “old- ashioned” epo ing s ill
engages audiences. In he USA, many o he legacy media,
such as he Washing on Pos and he Wall S ee Jou nal,
ha e ecen ly g own hei subsc ip ion base especially
among young consume s (Schwa z, 2017).
These ends imply ha an audience- i s de elop-
men o a ec , iden i y, and emo ion is eme ging as
news consump ion is shi ing o online—while, a he
same ime, adi ional epo ing is s ill ega ded as alu-
able. A key ques ion o he u u e o jou nalism is, hen,
how jou nalism can e-es ablish a connec ion wi h i s
audience while also p ese ing i s own au onomy. Ben-
on (2017) belie es ha in o de o ec ea e hei ela-
ionship wi h he audiences, news o ganisa ions need o
o e a eeling o communi y and pe sonal connec ion
wi h hem, as well as p oducing us wo hy, high-quali y
jou nalism—in o he wo ds: hyb id jou nalism, a guably
en icing ich hyb id engagemen .
Howe e , he concep o hyb idi y can be c i icised
as being oo ague and gene al. Wi schge, Ande son,
Domingo and He mida (2018, p. 2) c i icise hyb idi y as a
ca ch-all e m and a sho cu o “deno e e e y hing ha
is complex as hyb id”. They call o nex s eps in he s udy
o hyb idi y o “no only name bu also desc ibe and
heo ize he complexi y o he ield” (p. 4). Impo an ly,
he implica ions o hyb idi y emain unde -explo ed in
he ield o jou nalism s udies (Baym, 2017, p. 11), and
esea ch on hyb id jou nalism ends o ocus on so -
news gen es (c . Bødke , 2017; Hamil on, 2016) such as
celeb i y jou nalism (Bulck, Paulussen, & Bels, 2017).
Baym (2017) con ibu es o he s udy o hyb id jou -
nalism by di iding he concep in o h ee in e linked le -
els: sys emic, discu si e, and ex ual. Sys emic hyb idi y
e e s o he melding o echnological a o dances, eco-
nomic agendas, and s uc u es o media p oduc ion and
dis ibu ion. Discu si e hyb idi y e e s o he blending
o jou nalis ic discou ses o “linguis ic consciousnesses”.
Tex ual hyb idi y desc ibes he blending o gen es, o ms,
and s yles. In ac , all new jou nalis ic gen es, such as
pa icipa o y jou nalism, can be de ined as hyb id as
hey mix di e en elemen s in a non-bina y way (see
Wi schge e al., 2018).
Th ough hese h ee le els hyb idi y can be seen as
a u u e-o ien ed concep : by adding new segmen s on
op o adi ional jou nalis ic alues and a ibu es, di -
e en mani es a ions o hyb idi y open new pa hs o
he de elopmen o jou nalism (see Wagemans e al.,
2018). In o de o analyse hyb idi y in he alues o
jou nalis s in a mo e ocused way, his a icle concen-
a es on discu si e hyb idi y and de ines i as he blend-
ing o wo cons i u i e jou nalis ic no ions—objec i i y
and dialogue—which ha e adi ionally been hough o
as compe ing and incompa ible (So e , 2009). Acco d-
ing o So e (2009), objec i e jou nalism obse es, ga h-
e s in o ma ion, and objec i ies social phenomena while
main aining an ex e nal posi ion and a oiding dialogical
ela ionships. Dialogical jou nalism, in u n, p esen s a
polyphony o iews ins ead o an au ho i a i e mono-
logue, encou ages di e en in e p e a ions ins ead o a
uni ied, single message, and d aws on he subjec i e, pe -
sonal s yles o indi idual epo e s. The goal o dialogical
jou nalism is o inspi e public discou se and poli ical com-
munal li e as opposed o simply con eying neu al in o -
ma ion o ci izens (Ca ey, 1989).
I may be ha in he u u e pa icipa o y app oaches
s ee jou nalism in he di ec ion o he hyb idi y o ob-
jec i i y and dialogue. Becke and Deuze (2016) call his
kind o a new jou nalis ic ideal “a ec i e objec i i y”, pi-
onee ed by he global jou nalism s a up scene: while
e aining i s c i icali y and independence, jou nalism o
a ec i e objec i i y ad oca es mo e engaged, in ol ed,
and emo ional app oaches. The concep o a ec i e ob-
jec i i y is close o he concep o hyb id engagemen
ou lined in his a icle.
3. En ep eneu ial Jou nalis s as Change Agen s
En ep eneu ial jou nalism is g owing globally
(Ma hisen, 2017), and is one o he ends shaping
he u u e o jou nalism (Wagemans e al., 2018). En-
ep eneu ial jou nalis s a e hose who ha e es ablished
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 81
hei own business, and who no only p oduce jou nal-
ism bu ha e a o al con ol o e unning he en e -
p ise. Case o-Ripollés, Izquie do-Cas illo and Doménech-
Fab ega (2016) desc ibe en ep eneu ial jou nalism as
ha ing h ee cha ac e is ics: i 1) is p oduced by small-
scale media o ganisa ions, o coope a i es, o indi id-
ual ini ia i es, 2) in ol es he c ea ion o a business o
one’s own—seeking new (business) oppo uni ies and
jou nalis ic niches, and 3) encou ages people o see he
jou nalis as an en ep eneu , “ ea ing down he wall
ha adi ionally sepa a ed he c ea ion o con en om
business” (p. 288). The hi d cha ac e is ic also in ol es
new o ms o news p oduc ion, such as he c a p oduc-
ion model o jou nalism ha e lec s he pe sonali y
and skills o he en ep eneu (Pica d, 2014).
Case o-Ripollés e al. (2016, p. 288) desc ibe in-
no a ion and c ea i i y as he co e quali ies o en-
ep eneu ial jou nalis s, “ en u ing in o new e i o y
and opics, and inco po a ing new echniques”. Assum-
ing con ol o e he p oduc ion, en ep eneu ial jou -
nalis s can s ee hei jou nalism in di ec ions hey ind
in e es ing, inno a i e, and wo h explo ing (Ca lson &
Ushe , 2016). F ee o he pa h dependencies o adi-
ional news ooms, new playe s in he ield can chal-
lenge es ablished no ms and ou ines and c ea e new
jou nalis ic cul u es and p ac ices (see Tandoc & Jenkins,
2018). En ep eneu ial jou nalis s, and especially coope -
a i e en e p ises, also seek o es ablish close and collab-
o a i e ela ionships wi h hei audiences, b idging he
gap be ween media ou le s and ci izens (Siape a & Pa-
padopoulou, 2016).
Mo e loose and inclusi e desc ip ions emphasise an
o ien a ion o change as de ining en ep eneu ial jou -
nalism (Compaine & Hoag, 2012). Some au ho s e en
coun eelance s as en ep eneu ial jou nalis s (De Cock
& de Smaele, 2016; Hol on, 2016) because o hei
“en ep eneu ial soul” (Ma hisen, 2017, p. 919). Along
hese lines, Schul z and Jones (2017, p. 12) emphasise
“disco e y and exploi a ion o oppo uni ies” as de in-
ing en ep eneu ial jou nalism, accen ua ing ha en-
ep eneu ial jou nalism does no conce n only nascen
and small en e p ises bu businesses o all sizes.
The abo e e iew is in line wi h wha Singe (2017a)
poin s ou : he concep o en ep eneu ial jou nalism
is blu y, mo e a label han an iden i iable p ac ice. Ac-
co ding o Vos and Singe (2016, p. 150), en ep eneu ial
jou nalism is “as likely…desc ibed in e ms o an ‘en-
ep eneu ial spi i ’ as…a speci ic p ac ice o se o p ac-
ices”. Pe haps a c i e ion ha is nei he oo exclusi e no
oo inclusi e is he ollowing: en ep eneu ial jou nalism
in ol es he disco e y o new oppo uni ies and he con-
s uc ion o a business a ound hem. Legacy media can
also ind and exploi new oppo uni ies, bu hei busi-
ness is no dependen on hem. Al hough la ge, es ab-
lished digi al media ou le s such as Buzz eed o Vox a e
no s ic ly en ep eneu ial as hey a e no mo e ex en-
sions o hei ounde s o owned solely by hem, hei
business is based on one de ining idea— ocusing exclu-
si ely on explana o y jou nalism in he case o Vox, o
ying o make news i al in he case o Buzz eed.
Finally, i mus be emphasised ha en ep eneu ial
jou nalism is no abou di ching he adi ions o jou nal-
ism. New media ou le s o en uphold he co e alues o
jou nalism (Tandoc & Jenkins, 2018; Ushe , 2017; Wage-
mans e al., 2018). Fo ins ance, he Du ch s a up De
Co esponden is a hyb id o objec i e epo ing and jou -
nalis s’ media ing subjec i i y (Ha be s, 2016). In a simi-
la way, Buzz eed p oduces a he adi ional jou nalism
bu emphasises he impo ance o social and iden i y-
ela ed issues ha a e o in e es o i s audiences, as
well as d awing on he knowledge o ci izen sou ces (Tan-
doc, 2018).
4. We he Explo e s—Discou ses o En ep eneu ial
Jou nalism
4.1. Da a and Me hod
The da a o he a icle is collec ed om he “Abou Us”
pages o 41 en ep eneu ial jou nalism ou le s mainly
om he U.S., wi h indi idual ou le s om Canada, Cuba,
Denma k, F ance, Ge many, I aly, Ne he lands, Sco land,
Spain and Sweden (see Appendix). The U.S. ou le s we e
chosen om a lis o majo digi al media o ganisa ions
collec ed by Pew Resea ch Ins i u e (Ju kowi z, 2014).
The lis was complemen ed wi h smalle en ep eneu ial
ou le s bo h inside and ou side he U.S. The sampling
was con inued un il a su icien ly di e se sample o ou -
le s was co e ed. Da a sa u a ion was eached as all col-
lec ed da a i in he iden i ied discou ses and did no
e eal unco e ed aspec s in hem. Pe haps su p isingly,
no coun y o egion-speci ic di e ences we e iden i ied,
excep o a b ie men ion abou he igh agains censo -
ship in he Cuban case. The U.S. pages we e collec ed in
sp ing 2015 o he pu poses o ano he esea ch p ojec
(Ruo salainen, 2016) and he es in au umn 2017. The
non-English pages we e ansla ed in o English.
Because he pu pose o his a icle is o add o he
unde s anding o he eme ging e hos o en ep eneu ial
jou nalism, a b oad de ini ion o en ep eneu ial jou -
nalism (Singe , 2017b) was assumed in he collec ion o
he da a. The selec ed ou le s include a b oad spec um
o la ge and small en ep eneu ial media o ganisa ions:
s a ups, non-p o i s, es ablished ou le s and newcom-
e s. Fo he same easons, he de ini ion o jou nalism
was kep ela i ely wide. While mos o he o ganisa-
ions in he da a a e jou nalis ic, he e a e some, such
as he science publica ion Aeon o he echnology si e
TechC unch, which do no publish “news” bu , a he ,
opical a icles wi h a niche in e es .
On he “Abou Us” pages he new digi al media ou -
le s desc ibe hei jou nalism, alues and isions, he eby
opening is as o possible u u es o jou nalism (Ca lson
& Ushe , 2016). To e eal he sha ed meanings in he
ex s, he da a was analysed using discou se analysis. Dis-
cou se e e s o a socially designa ed and sha ed way o
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 82

hinking exp essed h ough language. Discou ses a e so-
cial bounda ies a ound wha can be said abou a opic,
and how. This way hey bo h limi and enable how a phe-
nomenon o issue can be p esen ed. (Fai clough, 2003.)
New, eme ging discou ses c ea e new social eali y and
can be used o an icipa e eme ging social u u es (Inay-
a ullah, 1998).
The analysis was ini ia ed by coding di e en hemes
ound in he da a. The ac ual discou se analysis was con-
duc ed by analysing how hese hemes a e ep esen ed
in he da a. Fou discou ses we e iden i ied and analysed:
iden i y,niche,ne wo k, and change discou se. A a he
s ong discou se o adi ional jou nalism was also iden-
i ied. This discou se consis s o such ea u es and al-
ues as ac uali y, public se ice and impa iali y. Because
hese ea u es a e well-known, he discou se o adi-
ional jou nalism will no be p esen ed in mo e de ail in
his a icle. The discou se is, howe e , pi o al as i sup-
po s he hypo hesis o his a icle— ha he concep ion
o jou nalism among en ep eneu ial jou nalis s is a hy-
b id o he adi ions o objec i i y and dialogue.
4.2. Media Ou le s as Pe sons—The Iden i y Discou se
In he iden i y discou se he media signi y hemsel es as
human-like indi iduals wi h hei own iden i y and pe -
sonali y. This is done in i e ways. Fi s , he media as-
c ibe hemsel es di e en cha ac e is ics and desc ibe
hei “emo ions”. Poli ico, o ins ance, is “p oud” and
i has “passion”, Ze land has w i en jou nalism as i s
“o iginal passion”, and Qua z is “ne dy” and de ined by
i s “obsessions”. Second, he media desc ibe hemsel es
as alue-d i en and e hical—how hey belie e in wha
hey a e doing. In es iga i e Repo ing P ojec I aly, o
ins ance, “belie es jou nalism should be a wa chdog o
democ acy” and K au epo e desc ibes i s “p inciples”.
Twel e o he media w i e how “dedica ed” and “com-
mi ed” hey a e o hei jou nalism, conno ing hey ca e
abou hei jou nalism on a “pe sonal” le el. Thi d, he
media cons uc iden i ies by iden i ying wi h hei au-
dience. Mic o ins ance w i es how i s edi o s and w i -
e s sha e a ibu es wi h i s eade s, and The Fe e seeks
o build a communi y o like-minded people. Fou h, he
media highligh hei indi idual epo e s and ounde s.
This can be in e p e ed as a way o b and hei jou nal-
is s (Molyneux, 2015), associa e he o ganisa ion wi h
eal humans and hus o cons uc an au hen ic iden-
i y. The Rumpus o ins ance men ions he “o e ly pe -
sonal” newsle e o i s edi o -in-chie , and Mic was c e-
a ed by “ wo long- ime iends”. Fi h, he subjec i i y
and pe sonal oice o he jou nalis s a e highligh ed. This
is demons a ed by De Co esponden , whose “au ho s
a e no objec i e au oma ons…; a he , hey a e subjec-
i e beings, oo ed in and mo i a ed by ideas and ideals”.
The iden i y discou se p esen s news selec ion and
jou nalism as some hing epo e s pe sonally ca e abou .
This is well exempli ied by K au epo e : “Ou au ho s
decide o hemsel es wha hey a e going o epo on”.
Howe e , he ocus is s ill on he news, on ma e s o pub-
lic in e es , and he discou se e lec s a hyb id o he ide-
als o objec i i y and dialogue. El Dia io mani es s his by
emphasising ha i s de ining alues a e subo dina e o
adi ional jou nalis ic ideals: “Bu all ou alues a e sub-
jec o a undamen al one in jou nalis ic e ms: espec
o he u h”.
4.3. Going Deepe —The Niche Discou se
In he niche discou se, he media emphasise how hey
concen a e and specialise—an o en- ecu ing wo d in
he discou se is “ ocus”. The subjec s on which he me-
dia claim o concen a e on a e, howe e , qui e gene al,
such as poli ics and business ends. Only a ew media
indica e clea ly de ined and na ow niches, such as The
Ma shall P ojec , which w i es abou he Ame ican c im-
inal jus ice sys em.
In o he wo ds, he media claim o ocus on a he
adi ional a eas o jou nalism—“niche” e e s o hei
speci ic jou nalis ic app oaches and oices a he han
na ow opics. The ou le s o en asse o ha e some dis-
inc ea u e ha sepa a es hei news om “ adi ional”
news. Buzz eed does no p oduce only news bu “ he
mos sha eable news”. Discou se Media is “ ocused on
ma e s o public impo ance” and includes opics such
as gende and indigenous issues among hose hemes.
Many o he media mani es hei jou nalism as
“deep”, as going o looking deepe han he su ace o
daily e en s: “di e deep” (P oPublica), “del e deepe ”
(Vox), “ o unco e , explain and highligh deep-lying s uc-
u es” (De Co esponden ). Many o he analysed media
hus claim hei niche as some hing mo e comp ehensi e
and mo e s eeped-in han day- o-day epo ing. In he
wo ds o Ze land, i s “mission is no o make news—i is
o make sense”.
Niche discou se he o ically highligh s how en-
ep eneu ial media di e en ia e hemsel es om
gene al-pu pose mass media and build hei dis inc i e
iden i y. This kind o jou nalis ic ideal is no abou p o-
iding “jus he ac s”, bu o assis wi h sense-making, a
co e ene o dialogical jou nalism. Howe e , he niche
discou se does no ques ion he objec i i y ideal o gen-
e al in e es jou nalism.
4.4. Rhizoma ic Media—The Ne wo k Discou se
The ne wo k discou se signi ies media as nodes in ne -
wo ks. The Ma shall P ojec , o ins ance, desc ibes i s
web page as a “dynamic hub”, and Fla o Wi e de ines i -
sel as “a ne wo k o cul u ally connec ed people”. The
ne wo k discou se ma ks a depa u e om legacy media,
which o en d aw clea lines o sepa a e hem om bo h
he audience and o he o ganisa ions and ins i u ions.
In he ne wo k discou se, he media seek o ne wo k
and es ablish a pe sonal ela ionship wi h hei audience.
The ne wo k discou se hence allows media o embody
i s audience’s as es and alues. The New Inqui y seeks
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 83
o “connec di ec ly wi h ou audience” and Qua z calls
eade s o sha e i s “passions”. A pe sonal and di ec ela-
ionship wi h he audiences is mani es ed in how he me-
dia p esen hemsel es as communi ies: he wo d “com-
muni y” appea s in he da a 15 imes (see Malmelin &
Villi, 2016).
The p oduc ion o jou nalism is desc ibed as a ne -
wo ked p ocess. The media o en men ion hei ee-
lance ne wo k and how hey coope a e wi h o he o -
ganisa ions. Discou se Media w i es how media should
“wo k oge he ” mo e, and how i “collabo a es wi h
ou colleagues o pool esou ces, build capaci y and
maximize ou collec i e impac ”. P oPublica no only
publishes pieces by o he ou le s bu also anno a es
hem and does ollow-ups. This way he ne wo k dis-
cou se elies on he collec i e in elligence enhanced by
he In e ne .
In he ne wo k discou se, hyb idi y is exp essed bo h
as a coope a i e p oduc ion o (objec i e) jou nalism and
as a dialogue be ween media and hei audiences. The
discou se can also be in e p e ed o inco po a e people’s
in ima e li e sphe es in o jou nalism—a co e cha ac e is-
ic o dialogical jou nalism.
4.5. The Re o mis s—The Change Discou se
In he change discou se, he media p esen hemsel es
as change ac o s: as e o me s o media, jou nalism,
and socie y. Fi s Look Media “seeks o imp o e socie y
h ough jou nalism and echnology”, and Ze land pa ici-
pa es “in he much-needed ein en ion o Danish quali y
jou nalism”. T adi ional jou nalism is displayed in he dis-
cou se as being oo passi e. Mic s a es how “news o ga-
niza ions can do mo e o empowe ou gene a ion”. P oP-
ublica, in u n, c i icises adi ional in es iga i e jou -
nalism o i s “pas ailings” and ou s how i will pe -
sis en ly hold he powe ul accoun able “un il change
comes abou ”.
Some media highligh na a i e jou nalism, as op-
posed o ac - epo ing, as being he ool o make such
change happen. Acco ding o The Ma shall P ojec “s o-
y elling can be a powe ul agen o social change”. Mic,
in u n, belie es ha ”s o ies…shape he wo ld, especially
when hey challenge adi ional na a i es”. He e, “ adi-
ional na a i es” can be in e p e ed as e e ing o legacy
media, as Mic no es how he pe spec i es o young peo-
ple a e o en “le ou o he media’s na a i e”.
In he change discou se, adi ional jou nalism is po -
ayed as oo dull and uni o m. Poli ico claims ha “ a-
di ional jou nalis ic con en ions…make s o ies dull, p e-
dic able and o en un eadable”. Implici ly c i icising ho-
mogenous adi ional media, The Awl a gues ha ead-
e s a e “poo ly se ed by being deli e ed hose same s o-
ies in numbing epe i ion”. Simila iews a e p esen ed
also by Gawke ,Mic,El Dia io,De Co esponden and
Ma shall Repo .
In he change discou se, adi ional jou nalism o he
objec i e adi ion is posed o be enewed by shaping
jou nalism as mo e socially ac i e and less dull and ho-
mogenous. The discou se implici ly encou ages he injec-
ion o jou nalism wi h he di e si y and “ac i ism” o di-
alogical s yles.
5. Ske ching Scena ios o he Fu u e o
En ep eneu ial Jou nalism
The u u e o en ep eneu ial jou nalism—as wi h jou -
nalism in gene al— emains undamen ally open. Al e -
na i e u u es o en ep eneu ial jou nalism can be
explo ed—and long- e m ideas, policies, s a egies, and
plans o mula ed—by cons uc ing scena ios. A scena io
is a i id, in o ma ion- ich desc ip ion o a ce ain opic
in a ce ain ime in he u u e, wi h key ends, decisions,
and e en s depic ing how he p esen si ua ion has led
o a pa icula u u e (Glenn, 2009; Rals on & Wilson,
2006). I needs o be highligh ed ha scena ios a e no
p edic ions: by s udying po en ial a he p esen ime,
scena ios an icipa e plausible u u es ins ead o p edic -
ing p obable ones.
This sec ion p esen s ou scena io ske ches o en-
ep eneu ial, hyb id jou nalism in he yea 2030. The
scena ios p esen ed a e called “ske ches” as hey lack a
ull na a i e o how a ce ain u u e could ha e been
eached—ins ead, hey a e mo e snapsho -like iews
in o he u u e. The yea 2030 is chosen because a li -
le o e en yea s is a su icien ime o en ep eneu ial
jou nalism o e ol e and es ablish i sel in he ield o
jou nalism. Each scena io ske ch ends wi h an in e p e-
a ion, in which mani es a ions o hyb idi y and possible
ou comes o he scena io a e assessed.
The scena ios we e cons uc ed by i s selec ing co e
elemen s om each o he ou discou ses and placing
hem in o a able. Then hema ically simila elemen s
we e coded o o m ini ial scena io ca ego ies. Finally,
o make he ca ego ies concise hey we e condensed so
ha each scena io had only one o wo elemen s om
each discou se (see Table 1). The able was hen elabo-
a ed and expanded as sho scena io na a i es.
5.1. Scena io Ske ch 1: Eli is -Indi idualis s
En ep eneu ial jou nalis s o e hei jou nalism o edu-
ca ed “eli e” audiences. Thei alue p oposi ion is based
on e y na ow—and hus highly mone izable—niches:
hey p o ide high-quali y, specialised and backs age in-
o ma ion he audiences canno ind elsewhe e. Quali y
jou nalism has become a way o make social dis inc ions,
and an ou le ’s dis inc i e iden i y en ices (eli e) audi-
ence engagemen .
The audiences expec indi iduali y, cha ac e and in-
eg i y om hei p e e ed media. Hence he media’s
iden i ies e lec hei ounde s’ pe sonali y, oices and
passions. As “indi idualis s” en ep eneu ial jou nalis s
o en a oid ha ing oo close a ela ionship wi h hei au-
diences. As such hey can emain ue o hemsel es, a
p inciple app ecia ed by hei audiences. Howe e , he
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 84
Table 1. Scena io ske ches o en ep eneu ial hyb id jou nalism in 2030.
Elemen s om he discou ses
Scena ios Iden i y Discou se Niche Discou se Ne wo k Discou se Change Discou se
1. Eli is - Iden i y based on he Na ow niches (such Ne wo ked wi h o he , A pionee spi i
Indi idualis s ounde s’ pe sonali y, as he judicia y sys em), simila media ou le s. emphasizing he
oices, passions and o en on opics ou side cu ing-edge, he
opinions. he daily news g ind. al e na i e, and
he expe imen al.
2. Communalis s Iden i y based on Rela i ely b oad opic Ne wo ked wi h he The audience
he audience and a eas (such as audience. Audience membe s as change
i s passions. echnology), bu membe s as agen s in socie y.
audience membe s epo e s.
p o ide highly
specialised knowledge.
3. Public Se ice Iden i y based on a Gene al news “wi h a U ilising he collec i e Seeking o enew
dedica ion o he wis ” (such as explaine s in elligence o he socie y.
“common good”. and in e p e a ions). public.
4. Iden i y Media Iden i y based on he Eclec ic niches e lec ing Ne wo ked, dis ibu ed Ca e ing o new,
epo e s’ pe sonali y he in e es a eas o “news ooms” and eme ging needs
and “obsessions”. epo e s. Pa isan eelance ne wo ks. and o e ing highly
jou nalism wi h s ong no el con en .
opinions.
media o en coope a e wi h o he high-minded media
ou le s, as well as high-p o ile o inside audience mem-
be s. Toge he his angua d bunch elen lessly seeks he
cu ing-edge and is p one o expe imen a ion.
In e p e a ion: P o o ypes o his kind o a u u e a e
such ou le s as he Poli ico o he Qua z. Dialogue in jou -
nalism is exp essed by he subjec i e oices o he en-
ep eneu s a he han a polyphony o iews. I a ocus on
eli e niches became mo e common, i would, on he one
hand, indica e a jou nalism ha is mo e in- he-know, e-
sou ce ul, and deep. On he o he hand, hough, i would
imply a e ea om he public sphe e and la ge-scale au-
dience pa icipa ion. A c ucial ques ion is whe he legacy
media would go his di ec ion oo, o whe he hey would
seek o ul il he unc ion o public se ice.
In his scena io, en ep eneu ial jou nalism would
p obably ely s ongly on audience paymen s, be hey
by subsc ip ion, membe ship ees o single paymen s.
This would u he isk widening he gap be ween
he in o ma ion-ha es and ha e-no s, he well-o and
he dep i ed.
5.2. Scena io Ske ch 2: Communalis s
En ep eneu ial jou nalism ou le s a e buil a ound au-
dience communi ies (see Malmelin & Villi, 2016). Audi-
ence membe s a e closely in ol ed and o en become
epo e s oo. In a highly agmen ed cul u e and pub-
lic sphe e, ci izens seek exis en ial secu i y and a sense
o pu pose om di e en communi ies—audience com-
muni ies among hem.
Jou nalis s specialise o o e con en ha hei audi-
ence inds in e es ing. The media’s niche a eas and pe -
sonali y e lec he in e es s and iden i ies o hei audi-
ence. Many o he audience communi ies a e o ien ed
owa ds public ma e s. Howe e , en ep eneu ial ou -
le s can nu u e communi ies also o hose audience
segmen s unacquain ed wi h cu en e en s. This os-
e s engagemen in ma e s o public in e es , and audi-
ence membe s o en become in luen ial change agen s
in socie y.
In e p e a ion: The scena io posi s ha audience
communi ies and a ilia ed hyb id jou nalism could ac
as b idges be ween p i a e and public mo i es and in e -
es s, in e ec c ea ing a new, hyb id social and socie al
en i y. The “dialogue” in his scena io is a balanced mix
o subjec i e s yles and di e en poin s o iew.
The scena io is inclusi e and pa icipa ion-posi i e
and does no sugges he p ospec o ising in o ma ion-
inequali y. Howe e , he isk is ha jou nalism may lose
i s au onomy: jou nalis s may ha e o submi o he au-
diences in o de o s ay ele an . All in all, his scena io
p omises a majo oppo uni y o en ep eneu ial me-
dia ou le s, assuming hey a e much mo e p o icien in
nu u ing audience communi ies han igid legacy media
(see Villi & Jung, 2015).
5.3. Scena io Ske ch 3: Public Se ice
En ep eneu ial jou nalis s o e hei p oduc s o he
gene al public. They epo on he ma e s o public in-
e es , bu in new ways— o example, h ough news ex-
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 85
plaine s. Many en ep eneu ial news ou le s also spe-
cialise in co e ing jou nalis ic blind spo s.
En ep eneu ial jou nalis s cons uc hei iden i ies
h ough a dedica ion o he common good. S ill, hey a e
no as passi e in ega ds o p omo ing change as legacy
media bu seek o enew socie y and igh w ongs. The
pola isa ion and decen alisa ion o socie ies has been
e e sed h ough s a e in e en ions, ac i e social policy,
and ci ic-minded jou nalism. Ci izens a e o a la ge ex-
en commi ed o ac ing in he bene i o he b oade
socie y. En ep eneu ial jou nalis s a e ne wo ked wi h
ci izens, and can hus e icien ly u ilise he collec i e in-
elligence o he public.
In e p e a ion: This scena io could be d i en by a
b oad awakening o he h ea o widening social gaps
and deepening inequali ies in he socie y. A gene al sen-
imen owa ds public-mindedness would encou age en-
ep eneu ial jou nalis s o emb ace adi ional i ues
o jou nalism wi h an ac i is s eak, compe ing in he
same ield wi h legacy media bu seeking o ou pe o m
hem in e ms o social impac .
In his scena io, en ep eneu ial jou nalis s pionee
a new kind o “ins i u ionalised” public o ci izen jou -
nalism, one ha has he p owess o espond o he pe -
cei ed sho comings o mains eam media. Jou nalism
leans owa d an objec i e s yle o deli e y wi h an em-
phasis on unde se ed oices.
5.4. Scena io Ske ch 4: Iden i y Media
En ep eneu ial jou nalism ou le s ocus on helping audi-
ences cons uc hei iden i ies. Iden i y poli ics ha e es-
cala ed. The wo ld is changing as e han expec ed, and
people che ish and p o ec hei iden i ies almos neu-
o ically. Media ou le s base hei iden i ies on hei e-
po e s’ “obsessions”.
The niche a eas en ep eneu ial media ocus on a e
eclec ic, e lec ing he pe sonal in e es s o bo h he e-
po e s and he audiences. Jou nalism is o en hype -
pa isan wi h s ong, albei well-a gued, opinions and
iews. S ill, people a e cu ious abou he wo ld and con-
s an ly seek new ma e ial o cons uc hei iden i y.
News ooms a e highly ne wo ked, o en ee o phys-
ical spaces. F eelance ne wo ks and audience pa ici-
pa o s p o ide epo ing and ideas o mee ex emely
di e se demands. En ep eneu ial jou nalism ca e s o
new, eme ging needs, as es and opics, o e ing highly
no el con en .
In e p e a ion: In his scena io, hyb id jou nalism is
pe haps mos domina ed by dialogue and especially i s
use o li e a y echniques. Wi h na ow audience seg-
men s and hei own jou nalis ic oices, his scena io e-
lec s wha Nechush ai (2018) desc ibes as an eme ging
news sys em ca ego y o “pola ized libe al”.
Wi h he ocus on idiosync asy and iden i y, he sce-
na io uns he isk o se e ing cul u al and ideological
pola iza ion. On he o he hand, in his scena io media
a e he mos plu alis ic and di e se, and audiences highly
engaged o pa icipa e in he p oduc ion o jou nalism.
Hence, pe haps pa adoxically, he e is also a po en ially
heigh ened in e es in public a ai s.
6. Conclusions
In a possible u u e, jou nalis ic media ou le s will con-
inue o lose hei ele ance, in e es and engagemen
among audiences, o he ad an age o o he con en p o-
duce s who engage mo e pa icipa o y o ms o commu-
nica ion on social pla o ms. The solu ion ou lined in his
a icle o a oid such a u u e is a hyb id o he ideals
o objec i i y and dialogue in jou nalism—a guably well-
i ing o he pa icipa o y social media. This ype o jou -
nalism has he po en ial o in oke “hyb id engagemen ”,
which d aws on bo h a ec and eason and po en ially
encou ages beha iou al engagemen as well—i.e., audi-
ence pa icipa ion.
The assump ion ha an ideal o hyb id jou nal-
ism and hyb id engagemen is spea headed by en-
ep eneu ial jou nalis s was es ed in he analysis o he
“Abou us” pages o 41 en ep eneu ial jou nalism ou -
le s. The a icle ound ha he discou ses—emphasising
dis inc i e iden i y, niche app oaches, ne wo ks, change-
o ien ed cul u e, and adi ional jou nalis ic alues—
indeed display hyb id no ions o jou nalism and engage-
men . In he wo ds o Ze land, jou nalism should “en-
gage he hea as well as he mind”.
Elabo a ing he discou ses, his a icle p esen ed ou
scena io ske ches o en ep eneu ial hyb id jou nalism.
In he “Eli is -indi idualis s” scena io, hyb id engage-
men is based on he mix o p emium and us wo -
hy quali y as well as he dis inc i e, highb ow sensibil-
i ies o he media ou le s. Audience pa icipa ion is ela-
i ely low as media ou le s and audiences alike app eci-
a e he uncomp omised au onomy o jou nalism. In he
“Communalis s” scena io, he media and hei audiences
li e in an almos symbio ic ela ionship, on which pa -
icipa ion and engagemen a e buil on. Audiences as-
sume jou nalis ic ideals and no ms, which se hem apa
om, e.g., independen blogge s. The “Public se ice”
scena io, comes closes o adi ional jou nalism, as en-
ep eneu ial jou nalis s o e hei jou nalism i s and
o emos o he gene al public. Howe e , hey engage
audiences by an ac i e s ance owa ds social change and
by emb acing a wide ange o ci izen con ibu ions, se -
ing hem apa om legacy media. In he “Iden i y Me-
dia” scena io, audiences a e engaged by he ou le s’ id-
iosync a ic iden i ies and con en s, which help hem con-
s uc hei iden i ies, as well as by he accu a e bu opin-
iona ed epo ing. Audience con ibu ions a e needed o
mee he immensely di e se and swi ly changing as es
and demands.
En ep eneu ial jou nalis s o e a es bed o expe -
imen wi h new app oaches in jou nalism. The scena -
ios p esen ed he e show di e en app oaches how en-
ep eneu ial jou nalis s can enew jou nalism and how
hyb id jou nalism can mani es and e ol e in p ac ice. In
Media and Communica ion, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 79–90 86