Abstract
This article studies the presence of infotainment style in the evening news programs of the Big Three Russian TV channels: Channel One, Russia-1, and NTV. Infotainment is not only understood as a focus on specific topics such as scandals and show business, but also as an effort to make information programs more engaging and visually dynamic. First, we establish conceptual definitions for infotainment and infotainment topics. Subsequently, we analyze the evening news broadcasts of the three channels aired between March 2021 and September 2023, using selected parameters. The survey reveals that while infotainment style is present in the evening television news, it is not a typical characteristic. Only one of the studied TV channels covered news related to celebrities, and diversification in news format was observed on just two of the analyzed channels. The findings indicate that, at least within the Russian television system, there is no direct correlation between the form of media ownership and the adoption of an infotainment style in the evening news. It can be hypothesized that the personal and professional characteristics of editorial staff members play a significant role in the utilization of infotainment. However, this aspect requires further investigation. Additionally, the survey demonstrates that there is no correlation between program ratings and the presence of infotainment within them.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
