Ester Appelgren

Data Journalism in Sweden: Introducing new methods and genres of journalism into “old” organizations

Data journalism is an evolving form of investigative journalism. In previous research and handbooks published on this topic, this form of journalism has been called computer-assisted reporting and data-driven journalism, as well as precision, computational or database journalism. In Sweden, data journalism is still fairly uncommon. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the development of data journalism at seven Swedish traditional media companies, using action research methods. The content of this paper is based on an online survey of journalists and in-depth interviews with editors at these participating companies. The results indicate that, based on how this field is currently perceived by journalists in the interviews, there is a common definition of data journalism. Furthermore, the survey shows that the attitudes towards data journalism during the process of introducing new methods and genres of journalism into “old” organizations are correlated with the level of perceived experience in data journalism working methods. The main challenges facing the working methods of data journalism today are a shortage of time and the need for training and developing data journalism skills.

Virtual colleagues, virtually colleagues : physicians’ use of Twitter: a population-based observational study

Objective To investigate potential violations of patient confidentiality or other breaches of medical ethics committed by physicians and medical students active on the social networking site Twitter. Design Population-based cross-sectional observational study. Setting The social networking site Twitter (Swedish-speaking users, n=298819). Population Physicians and medical students (Swedish-speaking users, n=237) active on the social networking site Twitter between July 2007 and March 2012. Main outcome measure Postings that reflect unprofessional behaviour and ethical breaches among physicians and medical students. Results In all, 237 Twitter accounts were established as held by physicians and medical students and a total of 13 780 tweets were analysed by content. In all, 276 (1.9%) tweets were labelled as ‘unprofessional’. Among these, 26 (0.2%) tweets written by 15 (6.3%) physicians and medical students included information that could violate patient privacy. No information on the personal ID number or names was disclosed, but parts of the patient documentation or otherwise specific indicatory information on patients were found. Unprofessional tweets were more common among users writing under a pseudonym and among medical students. Conclusions In this study of physicians and medical students on Twitter, we observed potential violations of patient privacy and other breaches of medical ethics. Our findings underline that every physician and medical student has to consider his or her presence on social networking sites. It remains to be investigated if the introduction of social networking site guidelines for medical professionals will improve awareness.

An Illusion of Interactivity: The paternalistic side of data journalism

This study explores paternalism in contemporary data journalism, a hybrid form of journalism where parts of the engineering culture are blended with the culture of journalism. Technologists often question paternalistic elements in design, whereas journalists consider paternalistic decision-making to be justified as an inherent part of what journalism is. Based on a predominately qualitative content analysis of paternalistic elements in 31 data journalistic projects submitted to the Nordic Data Journalism Awards in 2013, 2015 and 2016, three characteristics of paternalism were found: controlling functionality, the illusion of interactivity and linearity. All three characteristics include several types of control over the audience control, embedded in the design, and as previous research has found that paternalism is often associated with negative effects, on the basis of journalistic choices in design and presentation involving technology, the problem is whether the audience begins to perceive data journalism as controlling, non-transparent or intrusive.

Data Journalists Using Facebook : A Study of a Resource Group Created by Journalists, for Journalists

Abstract On Facebook there are interest groups created by journalists, for journalists, that focus on the journalistic profession and work methods. One example is the Swedish group, “Datajournalistik” (in English, “Data Journalism”), which was created in 2012. This article builds on Granovetter’s theory on the strength of weak ties and is focused on the skill development process taking place in the group. A content analysis has been carried out of all posts that received comments in order to explore the social functions of the group. The results indicate both a significant need for knowledge exchange and a need for self-affirmation. At the time of the study, the group was unique in the Nordic countries and as such has played a major role in data journalism’s development process in the Nordic region.

E-paper News Publishing

Abstract Electronic distribution is challenging the newspaper industry to seek new ways of publishing; consequently, news content could be processed on and for a variety of output platforms. Electronic paper (e-paper) could turn into a major newspaper publishing channel due to its ability to display content in a paper-like manner, with lower weight, lower power consumption, and facilitated handling compared to a computer, but without the major publishing and distribution costs associated with printed newspapers. This work is based on seven case studies of newspaper companies in Sweden, Europe and North America, and analyses newspaper companies’ views on future e-paper publishing. The objective has been to examine the conditions that would enable the e-paper medium to become viable as a newspaper-publishing channel. Newspaper companies regard the idea of a future e-paper edition as very promising, but are uncertain as to what strategy to use. The final product will be a balance between cost, reorganization, the available number of rich media, and updates. Based on the companies’ views, five models of how to incorporate an e-paper publishing channel into existing newspaper production have been proposed. The appropriateness of the models depends on each newspaper company’s conditions, including assets, consumer base and demographics, current workflow, and future strategies.

The Promise of the Transparency Culture : A comparative study of access to public data in Spanish and Swedish newsrooms

In 2013, with the introduction of the Transparency Law in Spain, a number of Spanish newsrooms started working with data journalism methods. In Sweden, which has one of the oldest Freedom of Information acts in the world, newsrooms invested in the skill development of data journalism at approximately the same time. Because previous research suggests that access to public data has been one of the key driving forces for the development of data journalism worldwide, it is important to understand how legislation is actually shaping the practice of data journalism. Based on a survey of 66 key informants in Spain and Sweden and ten in-depth interviews with data journalists from five media companies in each country, we conducted a comparative study, building on the frameworks of media systems to explore data journalism practices in these two countries. The differences found indicate that the national and EU legislation in both nations shape journalistic strategies for accessing data, turning journalists at times into activists fighting for the right to access public data. Beyond the law, data journalists advocate for a transparency culture among the civil servants, in order to secure public accountability.