Data Journalism and the COVID‑19 Disruption offers an international, multidisciplinary account of how and to what extent the COVID‑19 pandemic has been a blessing for data journalism.
Bringing together insights into current developments in data journalism during (and since the onset of) the COVID‑19 pandemic from world‑leading data journalism practitioners and academics, this book draws on case studies and examples from different countries to critically reflect on emerging data journalism practices during the pandemic and their sustainability and implications for journalism and newsroom work in the post‑pandemic era. The chapters document changes in the practice and integration of data journalism into newsrooms and the 24/7 news cycle after the unexpected onset of the pandemic and explore how newsrooms and journalists are coping with the sudden and immense demand for data journalism and related challenges. This book also scrutinises the implications for understanding the roles played by newsroom structure and operation, the uncertain nature of data, and the relationship between journalism and other social entities such as audiences and the state in journalism’s development through times of crisis.
Offering a timely contribution to the discussions on how data journalism evolved during a time of crisis, this volume will appeal to scholars and students of data journalism, journalism practice, media and communication studies, and media industry studies.
Introduction
Part 1 Data journalism practices: Achievements, changes and challenges
1 Four shifts in data journalism practice during the COVID-19 pandemic
Ashley Kirk
2 Communicating uncertainty in data journalism during the Covid-19 pandemic
Paul Bradshaw
3 Data journalism and investigative news reporting practices during the pandemic: The case of Zimbabwe and South Africa
Allen Munoriyarwa and Sarah Chiumbu
4 Beyond the numbers: Spotlight on data and citizen journalism during Australia's Covid-19 crisis
Kim Doyle
5 The ethics of data journalism in a pandemic
Nathan Sparkes
Part 2 Data journalism and the newsroom
6 Automating the COVID-19 story in the newsroom
Carmen Aguilar García
7 Data journalism practices during COVID-19 in the main Spanish newspapers: Features of data-driven stories and the influence of the pandemic on newsrooms
Alba Córdoba-Cabús and Pedro Farias-Batlle
8 Longitudinal reporting and the COVID-19 pandemic: The need for integrated newsroom data practice
Joanna S Kao and Susan E McGregor
Part 3 Data journalism and its audiences
9 Factors influencing audience engagement with COVID-19 data visualisations: A case study
Jingrong Tong
10 The audience turn in data journalism: How do data journalists conceptualize and perform audience engagement?
Lindita Camaj, Jason A. Martin, and Gerry Lanosga
11 Trustworthiness, accuracy, and transparency: The audience’s perceptions of errors in data journalism
Mathias-Felipe de-Lima-Santos and Marília Gehrke
Part 4 Data journalism, data, and external entities
12 From restrictions on freedom of expression and access to COVID-19: Open-source data in investigative Arab journalism
Miral Sabry AlAshry
13 Shaping data journalism in times of crisis: Critical perspectives on the potential role of the state
Shangyuan Wu
14 Data journalism and public health during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: Opportunities and challenges to improve pandemic preparedness and research
Angel N. Desai, Sangeeta Bhatia, Anne Cori, and Britta Lassmann
Conclusion
Biography
Jingrong Tong is Senior Lecturer in Digital News Cultures at the University of Sheffield. She is the author of Data for Journalism: Between Transparency and Accountability and seven other books. Her current research focuses on media freedom, the impact of digital technology on journalism, and social media communication of social issues.
