This book examines youth media practices on social media, introducing the concept of connective journalism as a precursor to collective political action.

The future of newspapers is hotly contested. Pessimistic pundits predict their imminent demise while others envisage a new era of participatory journalism online, with yet others advocating increased investment "in quality journalism" rather than free gifts and DVDs, as the necessary cure for the current parlous state of newspapers. Globally, newspapers confront highly variable prospects reflecting their location in different market sectors, countries and journalism cultures. But despite this diversity, they face similar challenges in responding to the increased competition from expansive radio and 24 hour television news channels; the emergence of free "Metro" papers; the delivery of news services on billboards, pod casts and mobile telephony; the development of online editions, as well as the burgeoning of blogs, citizen journalists and User Generated Content. Newspapers’ revenue streams are also under attack as advertising increasingly migrates online. This authoritative collection of research based essays by distinguished scholars and journalists from around the globe, brings together a judicious mix of academic expertise and professional journalistic experience to analyse and report on the future of newspapers. This book was published as special issues of Journalism Practice and Journalism Studies.

Young People and the Future of News traces the practices that are evolving as young people come to see news increasingly as something shared via social networks and social media rather than produced and circulated solely by professional news organizations. The book introduces the concept of connective journalism, clarifying the role of creating and sharing stories online as a key precursor to collective and connective political action. At the center of the story are high school students from low-income minority and immigrant communities who often feel underserved or misrepresented by mainstream media but express a strong interest in politics and their communities. Drawing on in-depth field work in three major urban areas over the course of ten years, Young People and the Future of News sheds light on how young people share news that they think others should know about, express solidarity, and bring into being new publics and counter-publics.

As seen in Time, USA TODAY, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, and on CBS This Morning, BBC, PBS, CNN, and NPR, iGen is crucial reading to understand how the children, teens, and young adults born in the mid-1990s and later are vastly different from their Millennial predecessors, and from any other generation. With generational divides wider than ever, parents, educators, and employers have an urgent need to understand today’s rising generation of teens and young adults. Born in the mid-1990s up to the mid-2000s, iGen is the first generation to spend their entire adolescence in the age of the smartphone. With social media and texting replacing other activities, iGen spends less time with their friends in person—perhaps contributing to their unprecedented levels of anxiety, depression, and loneliness. But technology is not the only thing that makes iGen distinct from every generation before them; they are also different in how they spend their time, how they behave, and in their attitudes toward religion, sexuality, and politics. They socialize in completely new ways, reject once sacred social taboos, and want different things from their lives and careers. More than previous generations, they are obsessed with safety, focused on tolerance, and have no patience for inequality. With the first members of iGen just graduating from college, we all need to understand them: friends and family need to look out for them; businesses must figure out how to recruit them and sell to them; colleges and universities must know how to educate and guide them. And members of iGen also need to understand themselves as they communicate with their elders and explain their views to their older peers. Because where iGen goes, so goes our nation—and the world.

Looks at the emerging phenomenon of online journalism, including Weblogs, Internet chat groups, and email, and how anyone can produce news.

The Future of Journalism: Developments and Debates analyses the radical shifts in journalism which are changing every aspect of the gathering, reporting and reception of news. The drivers of these changes include the rapid innovations in communication technologies, the competitive and fragmenting markets for audiences and advertising revenues, and the collapse of traditional business models for financing media organisations, as well as changing audience requirements for news, the ways in which it is presented and the expansive number of (increasingly mobile) devices on which it is produced and consumed. Each of these trends has significant implications for journalists - for their jobs, workplaces, products and perceptions of their professional roles, ethical judgements and day-to-day practice. They also pose significant challenges for the future funding of a sustainable, critical and high ‘quality’ democratic journalism. The Future of Journalism: Developments and Debates comprises the research-based responses of distinguished academic specialists and professional journalists to the challenging issues involved in assessing the future of journalism. It is essential reading for everyone interested in the changing role of journalism in the economic, democratic and cultural life of communities locally, nationally and globally. This book was originally published as two special issues of Journalism Studies and Journalism Practice.

What are the current problems, pressures and opportunities facing journalists in advanced democratic societies? Has there been a 'dumbing down' of the news agenda? How can serious political, economic and social news be made interesting to young people? This book explores the current challenges faced by those working in the news media, focusing especially on the responsibilities of journalism in the advanced democracies. The authors comprise experienced journalists and academics from the UK and the other countries investigated. In the opening section they investigate the key issues facing twenty-first century journalism; while in section two they offer in-depth studies of the UK news media, discussing national newspapers; regional and local newspapers, both paid for and free; terrestrial, satellite and cable television news; radio news and online journalism. These detailed analyses provide the basis for a comparison with the media of a variety of other key advanced democracies: namely the USA, France, Germany, Italy and Japan. Drawing on this evidence, the authors map out possible future developments, paying attention to their likely global impact. The book's provocative conclusions will provide the groundwork for continuing debate amongst journalists, scholars and policy-makers concerned about the place of journalism in invigorating political processes and democratic functions.