Scholarly Articles about Online Journalism

A Selective List Compiled by Mindy McAdams

This list includes only articles that have been published in peer-reviewed scholarly journals. I have been compiling this list for several years, but it is not meant to be comprehensive by any means. I am trying to keep it to 20 articles or fewer. I am also trying to keep it very recent. Articles about online journalism that were published before 2000 have scant relevance to today's practice of online journalism.

All the articles on this list are articles I consider to be very, very good -- and worth reading. Exclusion from this list does not mean I didn't like an article -- I can't read everything, and maybe the article you are thinking of is one I have not read yet.

Articles by Singer and by Deuze are seminal in the field. There are many articles by both of those scholars that I have not included here.

The four articles listed here by George, by He and Zhu, by O'Sullivan, and by Quandt et al. are ideal examples for a scholar who is planning a survey of online journalism in his or her country. Each of these four takes a different approach, and all can serve as valuable models for young scholars.

For a related but different list, see TV News Research Bibliography, (online news selections) from Deborah Potter.

I have made another reference list (September 2013) focused only on multimedia journalism.

I would be very happy to hear your comments about this list and to consider your suggestions for additions to it. E-mail:

Boczkowski, P. J. (2004). The processes of adopting multimedia and interactivity in three online newsrooms. Journal of Communication, 54(2), 197–213.

Chung, D. S. (2008). Interactive features of online newspapers: Identifying patterns and predicting use of engaged readers. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(3), 658–679.

Chung, D. S., & Yoo, C. Y. (2009). Audience motivations for using interactive features: Distinguishing use of different types of interactivity on an online newspaper. Mass Communication and Society, 11(4), 375–397.

Cohen, E. L. (2002). Online journalism as market-driven journalism. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 46(4), 532–548.

Deuze, M. (2005). What is journalism? Professional identity and ideology of journalists reconsidered. Journalism: Theory, Practice and Criticism, 6(4), 442–464.

Deuze, M. (2004). What is multimedia journalism? Journalism Studies, 5(2), 139–152.

Deuze, M. (2003). The Web and its journalisms: Considering the consequences of different types of news media online. New Media & Society, 5(2), 203–230.

Domingo, D.; Quandt, T.; Heinonen, A.; Paulussen, S.; Singer, J. B.; Vujnovic, M. (2008). Participatory journalism practices in the media and beyond: An international comparative study of initiatives in online newspapers. Journalism Practice, 2(3), 326–342.

Dupagne, M., & Garrison, B. (2006). The meaning and influence of convergence: A qualitative case study of newsroom work at the Tampa News Center. Journalism Studies, 7(2), 237-255.

George, C. (2005). The Internet’s political impact and the penetration/participation paradox in Malaysia and Singapore. Media, Culture & Society, 27(6), 903–920.

He, Z., & Zhu, J. (2002). The ecology of online newspapers: The case of China. Media, Culture & Society, 24(1), 121–137.

Larrondo Ureta, A. (2011). The potential of Web-only feature stories, Journalism Studies, 12(2), 188–204. A groundbreaking analysis of large online feature packages, using case studies.

Mitchelstein, E., & Boczkowski, P. J. (2009). Between tradition and change. Journalism, 10(5), 562–586. From the abstract: "This article reviews scholarship on online news production published since 2000. It examines research on five key topics: historical context and market environment, the process of innovation, alterations in journalistic practices, challenges to established professional dynamics, and the role of user-generated content."

Muthukumaraswamy, K. (2010). When the media meet crowds of wisdom. Journalism Practice, 4(1), 48–65. Good examples of crowdsourcing and participatory journalism.

O’Sullivan, J. (2005). Delivering Ireland: Journalism’s search for a role online. Gazette: The International Journal for Communication Studies, 67(1), 45–68.

Quandt, T., Löffelholz, M., Weaver, D. H., Hanitzsch, T., & Altmeppen, K-D. (2006). American and German online journalists at the beginning of the 21st century: A bi-national survey. Journalism Studies, 7(2), 171–186.

Robinson, S. (2007). "Someone's gotta be in control here": The institutionalization of online news and the creation of a shared journalistic authority. Journalism Practice, 1(3), 305–321.

Robinson, S. (2006). The mission of the j-blog: Recapturing journalistic authority online. Journalism: Theory, Practice and Criticism, 7(1), 65–83.

Scott, B. (2005). A contemporary history of digital journalism. Television & New Media, 6(1), 89–126.

Singer, J. (2006). Stepping back from the gate: Online newspaper editors and the co-production of content in campaign 2004. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 83(2), 265–280.

Singer, J. (2005). The political j-blogger: ‘Normalizing’ a new media form to fit old norms and practices. Journalism: Theory, Practice and Criticism, 6(2), 173–198.

Singer, J. (2004). More than ink-stained wretches: The resocialization of print journalists in converged newsrooms. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 81(4), 838–856.