September 2023
Tinius Digest
Månedlige rapporter om endringer, trender og utviklinger i mediebransjen.
Om Tinius Digest
Tinius Digest gir deg en oversikt over rapporter om og analyser av utvikling i mediebransjen og publiseres en gang i måneden. Her er våre viktigste funn fra denne måneden.
Del gjerne innholdet med kollegaer og bruk det i møter og presentasjoner.
Innhold
- More political content on non-news sites than news sites
- The complexity of building trust in news media
- Forced to commit digital crimes
- Reinforcing polarization
- Norway: 1 in 2 have witnessed online harassment
- Sharenting in Norway: Parental sharing on social media
- Streaming does not affect cinema attendance
More political content on non-news sites than news sites
Political Communication Journal has published a study analysing the role of non-news websites in disseminating political content and its implications for public opinion and political engagement.
Four main findings:
1
Low frequency of news site visits
Only 3.4 percent of online browsing involved visits to news websites. Within this, a small fraction (14 percent in the Netherlands to 36 percent in the US) consisted of political news.
2
Non-news sites an important source
Users encounter more political content on non-news websites than on news websites. 1.6 percent of visits to non-news sites were politically related, accounting for a significant proportion of online political exposure.
3
Impacting democratic attitudes
Exposure to political content, whether on news or non-news sites, influences democratic attitudes and behaviours. The impact of non-news site exposure is comparable and sometimes stronger than news site exposure.
4
Engaging a more comprehensive audience
The prevalence of political content on non-news sites suggests a broader reach of political information, potentially engaging a wider audience, including those less interested in traditional news media.
The complexity of building trust in news media
The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism has released a report examining what individuals expect from media regarding credible journalism.
Based on surveys conducted over three years in Brazil, India, the United Kingdom, and the USA, the report sheds light on the challenges and strategies for building trust in news media.
Three main findings:
1
Variability in trust expectations
The public's expectations for trustworthy journalism vary across and within countries. Typical desires for fair, accurate, and impartial coverage are influenced by subjective perceptions, making the quest for universal trust-building solutions complex.
2
Addressing declining trust
The report discusses four main trust-building strategies: editorial practices focused on 'solutions' or 'constructive' coverage, transparency efforts, management and staffing issues (including diversity, equity, and inclusion), and direct engagement and communication with the public.
3
Differing priorities among audiences
Audience expectations and beliefs about trust-building vary greatly. The report identifies disconnection or disengagement from news as a significant barrier to trust, with different groups prioritizing different strategies.
Forced to commit digital crimes
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has published a report that examines the extent of people being forced to commit digital crimes in Southeast Asia.
Four main findings:
1
Billion euro industry
Organized criminal gangs are forcing hundreds of thousands of people in Southeast Asia into digital crime. The crimes include romance scams, cryptocurrency, and illegal gambling, and the scam centres are estimated to generate billions of euros.
2
Mostly male victims
Sources indicate that at least 120,000 people in Myanmar and around 100,000 in Cambodia may be victims of this type of human trafficking.
3
Well educated
Most victims are men, and victims hail from diverse educational and professional backgrounds, including those with advanced degrees and multilingual skills.
4
Victims vs. criminals
Despite being coerced with violence and threats of violence, those who perform the scams are referred to as criminals – not victims.
Reinforcing polarization
Researchers from the Norwegian Institute for Social Research and the University of Oslo have published a paper on polarization and opinion dynamics in the digital public sphere.
Four main findings:
1
Potential echo chambers
The digital public sphere, characterized by the internet and social media, differs significantly from traditional media structures. It's more fragmented, enabling selective exposure and potentially forming echo chambers.
2
Echo chambers and trench warfare
The paper identifies two main dynamics in digital public discussions: echo chamber dynamics (where people are exposed to similar views) and trench warfare dynamics (where opposing views confront each other).
3
Opinion processes and polarization
Both echo chamber and trench warfare dynamics in digital media can reinforce existing opinions and attitudes, contributing to political polarization.
4
Impact on political knowledge and democracy
Empirical studies show that the Norwegian digital public sphere exhibits less echo chamber effect than the U.S., but polarization is still present in specific contexts. The researchers point to a general concern about the polarization of political knowledge, where the gap between the information-rich and the information-poor widens.
Norway: 1 in 2 have witnessed online harassment
Statistics Norway has published new statistics about internet usage in Norwegian households.
Four main findings:
1
Prevalence among the youth
65 percent of Norwegians aged 25 to 34 have witnessed online harassment targeted at individuals or groups. This figure slightly decreases to around 60 percent among the younger aged 16 to 24.
2
Decrease with age
The incidence of observing online harassment diminishes with age. Only about one in four (25%) of the oldest age group, those aged 75 to 79, report having experienced such incidents. For all ages (16 to 79 years), the figure is 47 percent.
3
Political opinions
Among those who have encountered offensive messages online, 37 percent identify political opinions as the most common reason for harassment.
4
Multiple causes
30 percent have witnessed harassment based on ethnic origin. Additionally, about 30 percent report seeing offensive messages targeting individuals or groups based on their religious affiliation, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
Sharenting in Norway: Parental sharing on social media
Consumption Research Norway (SIFO) has published a report on 'sharenting'—the practice of parents sharing content about their children on social media—in the context of Norway.
Four main findings:
1
Sharing with friends and family
Sharenting is common among Norwegian parents. Parents primarily use Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat to share with family and friends, especially during special occasions, to create memories.
2
Sharing without consent
Children and adolescents advocate for consent from an early age and respect for their boundaries. While they appreciate sharing during special occasions, they prefer to limit everyday life exposure, fearing losing control over their digital identities.
3
Generational tensions and identity conflicts
Conflicts arise from generational differences in perceptions of appropriate content. Parents and children often disagree on what is acceptable to share, leading to tensions. Parents have become more aware of the need for consent, influenced by their children and external sources like the media.
4
Varied levels of digital competence
There are varied levels of digital competence among participants in terms of technical, social, and legal aspects of sharenting. This highlights the need for enhanced media literacy among both parents and youth.
Streaming does not affect cinema attendance
The Norwegian Film Institute has published its annual audience survey. The figures in this report cover 2021 and 2022, and the pandemic thus influences the findings.
Four main findings:
1
Streaming—in addition to cinema
Streaming does not seem to affect how often people go to the cinema. People who consume much content from streaming services go to the cinema more often than others.
2
44 percent watch via linear TV
79 percent say they have watched series in the last week, of which 66 percent watch via streaming services and 44 percent via linear TV. The vast majority (70%) watch at least five hours of feature films (64%), series (79%), and documentaries (44%) on TV and streaming services weekly.
3
Following the algorithm
55 percent say they usually look for a specific title when they stream, while 34 percent say they follow the recommendations of streaming services.
4
Only three percent use pirate services
44 percent say they have searched for a specific title in the last month without finding it. Only three percent reported watching series via pirate services in the previous week, while the percentage for movies is four percent. This is on the same level as consumption via DVD and Blu-ray.