Description

ABSTRACT: Over the past years the media landscape has transformed as new technology
has developed. Digital technology changes conditions for and the pace of news
production – making the borders between producers, sources and consumers of
news media blurred. This article attends to the relationship between business
journalists and blogs in order to explore the conditions for news production.
Building on a survey among Swedish business journalists and a content
analysis of news material, this article examines if and in what ways blogs
influence the production of business news. The survey data prove variances in
attitude and use of blogs among Swedish business journalists. The results
demonstrate that business journalists are still reluctant to the use of blogs in
their daily work. Still, a significant part of the respondents argue that it is
important for them to be updated on discussions in the blogosphere. The
findings indicate that blogs are used by journalists, even though blogs are not
established as legitimized sources. The results also challenge established ideas
of what is considered to be “news” and open up for a discussion on how social
media changes the possibilities for agenda setting in corporate life.