Browsing by Author "Van der Spuy, Michelle"

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    Changes and challenges in the face of digital disruptions at community print newspapers of Boland Media and WP Media : perspectives from the newsroom
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-03) Van der Spuy, Michelle; Botma, Gabriel; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Journalism.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Community print newspapers in South Africa have not been immune to the consequences of the digital disruption on the media landscape in general and the print media industry in particular. While research has been conducted on the changes and challenges the digital disruption has caused in the print media industry, there is a lack of research on how this phenomenon has affected the newsrooms of community print newspapers in South Africa. This study employed a qualitative research design with a phenomenological approach as theoretical framework to examine the changes and challenges journalists working at community print newspapers in South Africa experience in their newsrooms. Interviews were conducted with nine community journalists from a number of community newspapers published in the Western Cape by Boland Media and WP Media. The researcher explored their experiences with and perspectives on changes and challenges in the newsroom, the way these journalists function in an online environment, the role of community newspapers in the communities they serve, the quality of community newspapers in South Africa as well as what the participants in this study believe the future may hold for these publications. The researcher found that while there are in fact a number of changes and challenges present in the participants’ newsrooms, this does not hamper their passion for or quality of their work.