Journalism in a Fractured World

What role does journalism play in building a democratic society? In the past decade different media have emerged that present the news in ways that widen divisions between people. As a result, these sources of information challenge the pluralism democratic societies have sought to build. The same digital opportunities that have allowed news blogs and independent journalists to expand our thinking about ‘the news’ have also opened the door to more divisive and more problematic media that work against a pluralist society.

In Journalism in a Fractured World, Scott Eldridge addresses the changing nature of journalism in a digital age and in societies that have become divided along lines of politics, culture, and ideology. How have digital and peripheral media challenged our ideas of what journalism is, and how can they help mend fractures marked by populist and polarised politics? 

Scott’s talk will be followed by a panel discussion with Lisa Gaufman, Assistant Professor of Russian Discourse and Politics, and Willem Groeneveld, journalist and Editor of Sikkom, moderated by Joëlle Swart.

Scott Eldridge is an Associate Professor with the Centre for Media and Journalism Studies, University of Groningen. His research explores the journalistic field, its boundaries, and the emergence of new types of digital journalistic actors. He is the author of Online Journalism from the Periphery (2018) and is editor of the Frontiers in Journalism Studies book series.

Lisa Gaufman is an Assistant Professor in the Research Centre for the Study of Democratic Cultures and Politics at the University of Groningen. She is the author of Security Threats and Public Perception (Palgrave 2017) and Everyday Foreign Policy (Manchester University Press, 2023). Lisa is currently working in a Horizon Europe project Detecting and Countering Information Suppression from a Transnational Perspective (De-Conspirator) aimed at studying foreign information manipulation and interference.

Willem Groeneveld is a Dutch journalist. Groeneveld studied journalism at Windesheim in Zwolle. After that he started working as a game journalist at NDC Mediagroep. Since 2014 he is editor-in-chief at Suksawat and Sikkom, blogs about the Northern cities of Leeuwarden and Groningen.

Joëlle Swart is an Assistant Professor in Journalism Studies at the Centre for Media and Journalism Studies and Theme Coordinator Digital Inclusion at the Jantina Tammes School of Digital Society, Technology and AI, University of Groningen. Her research focuses on changing everyday news use and how people develop habits, skills and knowledge around news and journalism in a digital environment.