Adapting investigative and data journalism to new players: How are actors working globally?

Abstract

Media organizations have been struggling to survive in the digital age. In order to get a chance to pull through while facing the threat of a post-truth era, data and investigative journalism seem to be more important than ever. The old model of highly competitive single newsroom environment evolve to a 'new model' of sharing information, sometimes on a global scale, dealing with new players. Thus, third-party organizations come in handy to help to overcome the lack of resources and skills within the newsrooms. This study conducted six (n=6) in-depth interviews with professionals working within thirdparty organizations, such as startups, studios or agencies in the five continents (Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania). The results show that the number of news outlets requesting their services have been reducing, with many organizations bringing these skills inside the newsrooms. The political context and media crisis also affect outsourcing by publishers. However, these organizations still believe they will be useful in the future with new technological capacities being requested, such as automation.