The creation/design of (new) collaboration formats for network journalism: A pending challenge for both Spanish and Portuguese online media

Abstract

The significant changes that have occurred in the communications scenario, including the new environment of the network society, have prompted the development of both active audiences and important segments of citizens willing to participate in communications processes that are technologically mediated. Despite the importance of the transformation for all communication processes and for journalism, digital native media outlets have not quite made a significant progress in creating their own formats in order to manage and channel the citizens' inputs in journalistic pieces of information. Although such digital media outlets have opened avenues for collaboration, they still experience difficulties to make the most of the possibilities offered by this new scenario. This text presents an overview of the current situation in Spain and Portugal and analyses other potential alternatives.