Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News Credibility
Regional and local media outlets have much more credibility than news organizations placed at a national level, according to polls. In a context fueled by the spread of disinformation, audiences seem to trust close journalistic sources, while national and international leaders are seen as polarized....
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Journalism and Media |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5172/5/1/5 |
| _version_ | 1827305827858382848 |
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| author | Ángeles Fernández-Barrero Rubén Rivas-de-Roca Concha Pérez-Curiel |
| author_facet | Ángeles Fernández-Barrero Rubén Rivas-de-Roca Concha Pérez-Curiel |
| author_sort | Ángeles Fernández-Barrero |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Regional and local media outlets have much more credibility than news organizations placed at a national level, according to polls. In a context fueled by the spread of disinformation, audiences seem to trust close journalistic sources, while national and international leaders are seen as polarized. However, local journalism has few resources for fact checking. In this context, we explore some of the strategies developed by local news organizations to avoid the proliferation of fake news. This study uses a multiple-case study on four local media outlets from similar media systems (Spain and Portugal) as a qualitative research strategy. Drawing upon in-depth interviews with local journalists and secondary data analysis, we examine how these media outlets deal with fake news, shedding light on internal fact-checking resources and other original strategies applied. From our interviews, their journalists are aware of the problem, asking for more training; whereas their organizations have different approaches to the digital platforms where most of disinformation circulates. These findings contribute to the scant literature on the role of the local field in disinformation, arguing that the social mission of local journalism may be a guarantee against fake news if their journalists are trained. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:06:42Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-21898caaded34b81aa9ee97e6d9ea49f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2673-5172 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:06:42Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journalism and Media |
| spelling | doaj.art-21898caaded34b81aa9ee97e6d9ea49f2024-03-27T13:49:49ZengMDPI AGJournalism and Media2673-51722024-01-0151657710.3390/journalmedia5010005Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News CredibilityÁngeles Fernández-Barrero0Rubén Rivas-de-Roca1Concha Pérez-Curiel2Department of Journalism II, Faculty of Communication, University of Seville, 41092 Seville, SpainDepartment of Communication and Sociology, Faculty of Communication Sciences, Rey Juan Carlos University, 28942 Fuenlabrada, SpainDepartment of Journalism II, Faculty of Communication, University of Seville, 41092 Seville, SpainRegional and local media outlets have much more credibility than news organizations placed at a national level, according to polls. In a context fueled by the spread of disinformation, audiences seem to trust close journalistic sources, while national and international leaders are seen as polarized. However, local journalism has few resources for fact checking. In this context, we explore some of the strategies developed by local news organizations to avoid the proliferation of fake news. This study uses a multiple-case study on four local media outlets from similar media systems (Spain and Portugal) as a qualitative research strategy. Drawing upon in-depth interviews with local journalists and secondary data analysis, we examine how these media outlets deal with fake news, shedding light on internal fact-checking resources and other original strategies applied. From our interviews, their journalists are aware of the problem, asking for more training; whereas their organizations have different approaches to the digital platforms where most of disinformation circulates. These findings contribute to the scant literature on the role of the local field in disinformation, arguing that the social mission of local journalism may be a guarantee against fake news if their journalists are trained.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5172/5/1/5disinformationfake newslocal medianews credibilityfact checking |
| spellingShingle | Ángeles Fernández-Barrero Rubén Rivas-de-Roca Concha Pérez-Curiel Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News Credibility Journalism and Media disinformation fake news local media news credibility fact checking |
| title | Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News Credibility |
| title_full | Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News Credibility |
| title_fullStr | Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News Credibility |
| title_full_unstemmed | Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News Credibility |
| title_short | Disinformation and Local Media in the Iberian Context: How to Protect News Credibility |
| title_sort | disinformation and local media in the iberian context how to protect news credibility |
| topic | disinformation fake news local media news credibility fact checking |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5172/5/1/5 |
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