BEYOND VISUALIZATION: EXPLORING NEW THINKING IN PRODUCTION TEAM DYNAMICS FOR NEWS WEB SITES
DOCTORAL CONSORTIUM YIYUN ZHA UNIVERSITY OF LAPLAND [email protected]
Taking into consideration a number of challenges ABSTRACT emerged from new technologies, from reduced time frames to limited creative freedom, it exemplifies As part of a larger study aiming at understanding fieldwork from working communities in two and improving interactive reader experiences geographically opposite Finnish newsrooms. I argue that the multi-faceted endeavours in news production through a study of news production team dynamics, team serve to a better understanding of interactive reader experience, from a designer’s perspective. The as a complex, multi-faceted endeavour, this paper fieldwork is part of the initial research plan that looks at the key factors affecting in-house visual explores the interrelations of four research questions, to clarify how the various objectives fit together in order to journalists’ view of news production and their reach the main aim. ability to think aesthetically. A number of impacts THE CONTEXT AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS influenced by new technologies will be explored, 1) Reduced time-frames followed by discussion on the rationale and Insofar as the current visualization in today’s Finnish development of news production processes that news web sites, it in general reflects the dominant design paradigm that remains deeply grounded by time- proposes a range of challenges for creative workers. efficiency, gearing mainly with news production time frames and newspaper layout. In this state of flux, the I intend to show how these movements call for a emergence and wide spread of virtual space has radical reconsideration of new thinking about news challenged traditional journalism, meanwhile it has affected how new media brings a new way of working web site visualization. as a connection with a mass of people to time and space as readers. With the dynamics in mind, the biggest INTRODUCTION impact in new media, therefore, is the demanding requirements for creative workers. In order to make In a European context, the Scandinavian countries are everyday online newspapers possible, editorial generally recognized as early adopters of digital media processes are bound to follow highly structured technology, especially in terms of common Internet schedule, so that the workflow can be continuous and access and use (Engebretsen 2006). Finland is among opportune. Digital journalism is a media profession that the top countries that started online newspapers quite has contributed to increasing demands on the efficiency, early, in compliance with its pioneer status of online cost-effectiveness, quality of presses and digital desktop journalism reading, as measured by newspaper tools. These have supercharged challenging circulation compared to number of inhabitants. Yet has requirements for in-house visual journalists to produce the implementation of new media technology led to accurate visual information in extremely reduced time enhanced journalism – so far? This paper explores the frames. news production team dynamics by focusing on visual journalists’ role currently practised in news web sites. 2) Limited creative freedom
No 6 (2015): Nordes 2015: Design Ecologies, ISSN 1604-9705. Stockholm, www.nordes.org 1 In daily work and practices in digital media production, a) What are the main principles for in-house visual it is not surprising that visual journalists’ creativity is journalists to apply in web design, and how have limited owing to restricted time in production process. these changed in the transition of media dynamics? A common concern regarding this issue is the limited (Theoretical and practical focus) and even gradual elimination of creative freedom. On the one hand, this implies that individual work no longer b) How can in-house visual journalists define self- satisfies the creative process of media work in positioning? (Theoretical focus followed by information and communication technologies. On the practical studies in Finnish newsrooms) other, a crucial nature of visual journalists’ work is to c) How are aesthetic inputs involved in visualization get accustomed into a converged environment. One of online newspaper’s layout design, as an instance of the convergence culture (Jenkins 2008) is an instrumental visual representation for increasing dependence on CCI Layout Champ (a understanding visual information structure in news desktop publishing software) for in-house layouters, web sites? (Theoretical focus) which is a sophisticated layout design package for an efficient content management with convenient use. d) What do in-house visual journalists experience the Despite of some customized services in-house, media on-going transition, particularly with regards to formats and visualization is generally standardized to how newsroom culture affects daily practices? accommodate the fixed system. (Practical focus) 3) Confusion regarding professional identity and job THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND positioning DISCUSSION During the media transition, however, communication Today the death of printed newspapers is an design covering journalism is likely to face changeable increasingly common subject of speculation, which is situation: decisions made and practices used in the past the result of the fact that the general circulation of can be seldom applicable in today’s newsrooms, newspapers is dwindling dramatically. This change has especially in visual journalism. This challenge faced by been labelled Journalism 2.0 (Muhammad 2008), meta- visual journalists in the transition from printed medium of digital computers (Manovich 2001), and multimodal characteristics compared to traditional newspapers to digital platform have not been well 1 addressed and well disseminated. Thus, online journalism (Thiel 1998; Pulkkinen 2008). The changes newspaper became a place where few design of technological development and people’s habitual researchers and theorists have elucidated in the reading have acquired growing importance in interactive circumstances. This is one reason why, for visual reader experience in an era when competition between journalists, possibilities of voicing their own opinions media houses has increased. In order to foster within journalistic interventions are very limited. knowledge of the ignorable trajectory of how visual Another reason for visual journalists’ taciturnity in journalists adapt their skills to the new environment, a newsrooms is the organizational norms that had been in shift to their transformative positioning, which is an place for decades guiding visual journalists who had inevitable but gradual process, is crucial. been dominated to think of their role as auxiliary of Visualization in news web site is the most distinct news production. Nonetheless whatever creative process representation of how visual journalists convey has changed and how visual journalists think of the information or pass emotional feelings by means of the transition, there has direct consequences on the information (Brusila 2014). One consequence of visualization produced and practiced. When in-house convergence of different media and technologies leads visual journalists’ work is integrated into an intertwined to a visual lifting in news web sites. Yet many visions of process, it affects both their understanding of scholars often take the value of technological convergence in workplace and of technology (Deuze, possibilities in social media at the expense of visual 2007). representation. Therefore, there has emerged a need to Therefore, visualization in news web sites has long look closer at the aesthetic inputs embodied in the relied heavily on a complex, multi-faceted endeavour, visualization, which is currently taken for granted to be which serves as a means for understanding and constructed by objects, the properties of objects and the improving upon interactive reader experience. information attributed in objects (Bertin 1983; Kress & Meanwhile, the underlying visual lifting also opens up van Leeuwen 1996; Engelhardt 2007; Brusila 2014). We greater possibilities in visual journalism. In the not merely keep the aesthetics in daily work, but following, four main research questions are tied in well remarkably, the integral of digital applications also to clarify the direction of the shift (from printed press to blends with prior experiences, which makes design digital news publishing) and the levels of visual practices more ample and even sophisticated. It means journalists’ involvement in the negotiation of technologies, workflow and aesthetics. The four 1 From a medium perspective, “the traditional journalism” in this research questions are: paper refers to printed newspapers, as a comparison of online news websites.
2 newsrooms in the recent years have grappled with THE METHODOLOGY commitment to investing more efforts in visual My goal in the study is to join the above-mentioned journalism. theoretical discussions, fill some gaps in existing The new requirements of new media in online research and try to track and outline developments in journalism has stemmed from the idea developed by some Finnish newsrooms cultures. The intended Bolter and Gruisin (1999), who stressed the dimension audience of this research is identified as newsrooms, of remediation2 development when referring to what is visual journalists and journalists who share an interest in ‘new’ in media historiography. It is assumed that digital improving reader experiences and visualization in news networked technology for electronic document storage web sites. I believe that this research, insofar as it eliminates restrictions on how much space can be used, considers the blurry job boundaries and team dynamics, and simultaneously keeps the door open to unlimited will indeed prove valuable to the targeted audiences. space for archiving news while continually offering the This study outlines two different methods as part of the most current information for viewers. In the remediation qualitative enquiry, described as analytical and process, the witness has been seen of how readers look ethnographic. From a theoretical insight, I have at the huge change (Jensen 2002); how practitioners consulted a solid range of literature enabling a clear (designers, programmers, engineers, etc.) apply new understanding of the challenges faced in this new media ideas into understandings (Manovich 2001); and how transitions. How new thinking of the media transition we understand news web sites as an event-take-place affects the visualization in news web sites will be terrace (Pink 2011). Since news is distributed as the gleaned throughout some interpretive analyses of layout meeting point of ‘new’ and ‘old’ media in news web design and infographic designs. Yet before digging deep sites, creative workers are required to obtain more in this study, it is appropriate to focus on a theoretical knowledge in both printed press and digital platform. understanding of the uncertainties caused by the Pink (2011) strengthens the abstract concept of ‘place’ changing media landscape. Of the ethnographic method, made here for thinking critically about multimodality I have narrowed the contextual focus by studying the knowing especially when moving images practiced by dynamics in two Finnish newsrooms, in opposite professionals are what is epitomized in daily work for regions of the countries. visual journalists. In online visual journalism, the attributes of time and space are developed and focused Apart from the analysis of theories from previous more than ever. Such an idea of event-place very well researchers, ethnographic research has been well fits in the discussions on the narratives, cognition and planned. It is important to look not only at what visual visual journalists positioning. journalists’ daily routines in newsrooms are conducted but also how organizational cultures affect visual The above interrelationships between remediation, journalists in practice. To be more specific, the focus visual journalist’s positioning and design aesthetics for will be emphasized on the exposition of what visual sustainability could be well elucidated in visual journalists do, how they do it and what they think about journalists’ daily routines, although it is currently not their work. This poses a challenge for newsrooms to common to integrate the link in between. Visualization adapt both infrastructure and ideology in compliance in news website is working more than an aid to facilitate with newsroom cultures. specific messages by texts, photos, columns and the interplay of these visual materials (Cairo 2013). As a My ethnographic research was designed on the basis of remediation of print press, news web sites provide much designer’s role in Design Department of Helsingin more space for visual journalists to strategically take Sanomat and Lapin Kansa, respectively one newsroom time and space into design practices in improving in the South and the other in the North. Helsingin interactive reader experiences. Yet visual journalists, Sanomat is the biggest subscription newspaper in such as video infographic designers, sometimes have Finland and Nordic countries, and Lapin Kansa is also found it difficult to communicate with journalists. The the biggest newsroom in the Northern Finland. For a understanding of moving image and animation frame is general picture of Finnish newsroom culture, I suppose meaningfully central instead of a bald description of the research results from these two newsrooms are words. In this vein, I believe that the interrelationships valuable and emblematic. are pragmatic enough to be used as a grounded theory in As early adopters of new media in Finland, and the research for two reasons: 1) to understand relatively small working communities, the groups I have visualization as design practice that may support a better chosen (visual journalists) are somewhat atypical communication with journalist’s use of text in news newsroom environments. Yet through interviewing production; 2) to investigate how visual journalists visual journalists and observing their practices and envision aesthetic inputs in specific context where routines there come interesting and valuable insights in newsroom culture plays a vital role. such ‘extreme’ cases. Given that Finnish newsrooms are generally small operations, I think the selected 2 Remediation here is adapted to Bolter and Grusin’s notes (1999) of communities in newsrooms are moderately the process of mediating something that has already been mediated in representative of the industry in general in Finland and the sake of realizing immediacy. such insights can in turn be fruitful for the next stage of
No 6 (2015): Nordes 2015: Design Ecologies, ISSN 1604-9705. Stockholm, www.nordes.org 3 the project. The ethnographic observations are aiming to Brusila, R. 2014. Design structures and meanings. In: be a grounded work for orientating a tendency of this Brusila, R., Vanhanen, H. (eds.) Integrated Media industry in a Finnish national level. in Change, pp.35-42. Rovaniemi: Lapland University Press. INITIAL FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION Cairo, A. 2013. The functional art: An introduction to The initial findings based entirely on the visual information graphics and visualization. San journalist’s point of view evidently identify four Francisco: New Riders. emerging characteristics of the new media for the sake of an interactive reader experience in news web sites. Deuze, M. 2007. Media work. Cambridge: Polity Press. The theoretical analysis and ethnographic observations Engebretsen, M. 2006. Shallow and static or deep and reveal that visualization in news web sites tends to dynamic? - Studying the state of online journalism integrate ‘space’ and ‘time’, coupled with the other in Scandinavia. Nordicom Review, 27(1), pp.3-16, three characteristics, respectively hierarchy, consistency [online]. Available at: and sequence. This amplifies traditional principles of
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