Internet News, the Changing Nature of Journalism and Misinformation: What are the
Risks for Scholars?
Lauren Brodsky
PhD Candidate
The Fletcher School
Tufts University
Presentation to ISA Conference, 2007
The nature of the news is changing. While some elements of this global
infrastructure remain the same – most notably that the West and the North
news coverage and that alternative voices find it difficult to gain access – the pace of
news and information, and the technology transporting it, are changing. These changes
create new challenges for governments, for consumers and for scholars. Policymakers
struggle to fill the 24-hour on-going coverage with stories framed
line. Politicians often have to respond to real time world events with little research and
time for consideration. Consumers may be overwhelmed by so many news options, but
more news does not necessarily lead to more understanding and cognition, in fact it may
lead to less as less space is designated for crucial background information. And scholars,
who study policy, governments and international affairs, are ultimately dependant on this
system for information. Bias and inaccuracy can have a damaging effect on scholarship.
With new standards and market driven priorities, there is little time for fact checking and
less time for corrections. This is a concern for all who consume the news. However, a
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Mark D. Alleyne argues that the structure of global news flows is dominated by the Northern hemisphere
– the US, and Europe – which feeds information to the South – Latin America and Africa. In his model, he
explains that news travels from the North to the South more frequently than the reverse direction, making it
difficult for Southern stories to gain access to the Northern press, while Northern stories dominate the
Southern press.
Alleyne, Mark D.; News Revolution: Political and Economic Decisions About Global
Information; St. Martins Press; New York; 1997; p. 12
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Robert M. Entman defines framing as “selecting and highlighting some facet of events or issues, and
making connections among them so as to promote a particular interpretation, evaluation, and/or solution.”
From Entman, Robert M.; Projections of Power: Framing News, Public Opinion and U.S. Foreign Policy;
University of Chicago Press; 2004; p. 5.
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