Twitter and the journalistic field: how the growth of a new(s) medium is transforming journalism

Abstract

This study advances journalistic field theory through a critical analysis of changes in the structure and practices of the journalistic field brought about through the social media platform Twitter, and the implications of this development. I present a case study of Twitter, its technological characteristics, and use as a form of social media to assess the growth of new media platforms and the increasing role of citizen journalism in the field. By combining qualitative methods of digital ethnography and ethnographic content analysis, I analyze Twitter usage by journalistic actors and contextualize these actions through a Bourdieuian field analysis. I argue that the rise of Twitter has played a significant role in shifting the boundaries of the journalistic field and the course of journalism as a profession. I further argue that journalistic social, cultural, and symbolic capital and doxa are undergoing significant change as the field's structure and practices are adapting to the web 2.0 era. These changes have led to the rise of a hybrid “web 2.0 habitus” that integrates values and practices from the journalistic field with those of nonprofessionals.