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PP 546 A Disruption of Media Hegemony? Independent and Radical Media Practices and Identities in Greece in the Aftermath of the 2011
Protests
P. Vatikiotis1, D. Milioni2
1 Kadir Has University, New Media, Istanbul, Turkey
2 Cyprus University of Technology, Department of Communication and Internet Studies, Lemesos, Cyprus
The last decade’s uprisings in different parts of the world have been significantly supported by citizen-generated communication practices, which facilitated
diverse modes of political self-expression articulated on public and (semi)-private social spaces, enhancing the realm of civic engagement emphatically.
Much has been written about the prospects of these ‘spontaneous’uprisings and the possible emergence of another ‘paradigm’of social movements (‘net‑
worked movements’) (e.g. Gerbaudo, 2012) at the global level (against capitalist globalization). Regardless of their success in the political sphere, these
protest movements have long-lasting effects in their national context, giving rise to the development of disruptive practices, such as self-organized political
projects (non-monetary local exchange systems, direct producers-consumers networks, worker self-managed factories) and alternative or citizens’media.
In Greece, the media landscape has changed dramatically as a result of the long-lasting financial crisis and the citizens’ uprisings. As institutional media
laid off a considerable number of journalists amidst the crisis, a new wave of media initiatives emerged, alongside previously existing radical media (e.g.
Indymedia), adopting alternative practices both in terms of modes of organization and content (Siapera et al., 2014). The paper analyzes the alternative,
independent and radical media practices in Greece in the aftermath of the ‘Aganaktismenoi’ movement of 2011, in terms of their political economy, their
journalistic practices and content, and the identities of media producers involved. The study draws on data obtained by interviews with alternative media
producers in combination with content analysis. Core questions the study addresses are: (a) How do alternative media come to be produced (Atton & Hamil‑
ton, 2008) in terms of journalistic practices (identification and selection of stories, modes of representation, sourcing practices, relationship with audiences),
structure and organization (e.g. collective and horizontal structures, financing models), and journalistic identities? (b) To what extent these practices repre‑
sent a disruption of the established hegemony in the Greek media landscape? References: Atton, C. & Hamilton, J. (2008). Alternative Journalism. London:
Sage. Gerbaudo, P. (2012).Tweets and the Streets: Social Media and Contemporary Activism. London: Pluto Press. Siapera, E., Papadopoulou, L., Archontakis,
F. (2015). Post-Crisis Journalism: Critique and renewal in Greek journalism. Journalism Studies 15(3), 449–465.
PP 547 Cooperative Media: A Viable Alternative to Mainstream Media?
L.P. Spyridou1, L. Papadopoulou2
1 University of Cyprus, Social and Political Sciences, Nicosia, Cyprus
2 Panteion University, Communication, Athens, Greece
Six years since the onset of the crisis, and after three bailout mechanisms, Greece is still in economic, political and social turmoil. Crouch (2012) refers to
Greece’s austerity package as the most explicit expression of post-democracy. Many voices inside and outside Greece have argued for significant flaws in
the remedy imposed. It seems though that the austerity dogma was overtly supported and legitimised by the legacy media (Mylonas, 2014; Doudaki
et al., forthcoming) whilst the political parties before and during the crisis have had an important ally: the Press (Spyridou & Koktsidis, forthcoming).
The crisis has blatantly revealed that both the political and the media system failed to meet their role leaving the citizens unrepresented, misinformed and
ultimately helpless. At this critical moment of crisis where the need for information is vital and greater than ever, a new kind of radical and critical media
initiatives arise. According to Fuchs (2010) such endeavors aim to challenge the dominant capitalist forms of media production, media structures, content,
distribution, and reception. An emerging configuration of alternative media is cooperative media, namely media that are owned by and run by journalists.
The Greek media landscape is witnessing a growing number of cooperative initiatives (Siapera & Papadopoulou, 2016). Although these alternative media
play an important role for democracy, scarce attempts have been made to explore their journalistic logic, and even less to analyse their audience. Using in-
depth interviews with practitioners of three cooperative media, , and the study attempts to map
the goals, values and practices of journalism professionals and how they attempt to counter traditional narratives of crisis. Additionally, using a web-survey,
the study explores: (a) the profile of this audience, (b) the perceived attributes of such media and (c) how the audience participates in this counter-sphere,
in terms of content production and financial contribution.
PP 548 The Evolution of “Humans of New York” and the Public Service Ideal in Journalism
J. Roberts1
1 Boise State University, Communication, Boise, USA
Professional journalists and journalism scholars have lamented the decline of the mainstream news media, particularly newspapers, and warned about
the threat to an informed public and the democratic process posed by a weakened or reduced profession of journalism. Meanwhile, others have lauded us‑
er-generated content and social media for their potential to empower citizens to take more control of the information relationship from institutions. Schol‑
ars such as Bruns (2008) have pointed out that the information production process of new media is different and, although it lacks editorial oversight, for
example, may result in good, accurate information. Few studies, however, have examined the extent to which new media have successfully filled the gap,
particularly in terms of public service, that journalists fear is being created by job cuts and the closure of print publications. The “Humans of New York”
(HONY) social media feed, featuring photographs of people in NewYork City—and in recent years also Iran, Syria, and other locations—has amassed more
than 8 million followers on social media, spawned a book, and inspired various copy-cat projects. Over the five years of its existence, the feed has evolved
from an assortment of photos of unusual individuals to an intentional, morally-conscious portrait of the diversity of NewYork City and other countries, and
has resulted in real-life consequences for the subjects, ranging from donations to invitations from the president of the United States. This paper analyzes
the content of the HONY feed in the context of public service ideals of modern professional journalism as laid out by scholars, professional journalism societ‑