Exploring the Reporters Sans Frontières Platform - the Use of Qualitative Methodology in the Study of Alternative Journalism in the Digital Age

EasyChair Preprint 7405

Abstract

Introduction: Alternative journalism is usually associated with political involvement or activism, but it also addresses a series of other themes such as minorities, ethnic groups, cultural and social actions usually managed by non-professionals. However, there are several examples in which journalists work professionally in the political and investigative aspects of this type of journalism. Technological innovation, especially since the expansion of internet 2.0 and the creation of social networks, has been a fertile field to the expansion alternative journalism. Our purpose is to carry out a study on digital alternative journalism, including the most important digital platforms in Portugal, some of the so-called best digital publications in English language and, above all to explore the work and contents of the online platform Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF). Goals and Methods: The work aims to understand the main themes addressed by alternative journalism organizations in the digital arena and to learn more about the RSF platform. This study is of an exploratory nature regarding alternative journalism from a digital presence perspective. We have used qualitative methodology and content analysis, data analysis and case study as qualitative research techniques. Data was retrieved from the corpus latente. Conclusions: This paper emphasizes the importance of qualitative research built on mixed research processes. We believe that our research is a contribution to a better understanding of the preferred themes, digital visibility and the importance of the work and professionalism of Reporters Sans Frontières journalists. The results allow us to infer that most digital alternative journalism platforms focus on politics and that the RSF through its significant worldwide network publishes sensitive issues of the global political environment.

Keyphrases: Alternative journalism, Reporters Sans Frontières, qualitative research

@booklet{EasyChair:7405,
  author    = {Luis Barbosa},
  title     = {Exploring the Reporters Sans Frontières Platform - the Use of Qualitative Methodology in the Study of Alternative Journalism in the Digital Age},
  howpublished = {EasyChair Preprint 7405},
  year      = {EasyChair, 2022}}