Hybridity and Social Media Adoption by Journalists

Abstract

This article applies the notion of hybridity to compare social media adoption by journalists in seven countries. Hybridity is operationalised through three constructs: complexity, interdependence and transformative potential. These three constructs frame the international comparison, which is based on empirical data from a survey of journalists (N = 2763) conducted in Canada, Finland, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States. The analysis found broad similarities between the countries, particularly in relation to widespread use of social media in journalistic practices, the importance of the general public as a source of information online, the high proportion of journalists interacting and responding to comments on social media, and the declining importance of PR sources for a section of the respondents. However, there were differences too between the countries, especially regarding the popularity of particular types of social media, the specific combination of professional tasks social media was used for, and perceptions about the impacts of social media. Overall, the findings illustrate that although country-specific characteristics do produce some differences, the key features of social media adoption are broadly similar in the surveyed countries and in this sense the process is both about integration and fragmentation.