Social News / Progress in Mathematics (PDF)

"Edward Hurcombe documents the rise of a journalism genre native to social platforms. Expertly woven, this narrative reveals the socio-cultural, technological, political and economic forces driving these innovative and unconventional news forms. Read this if you want to stay at the cutting edge of how journalism's roles and values are being challenged - and, accordingly, how its boundaries are expanding."- Sue Robinson,Helen Firstbrook Franklin Professor of Journalism, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA

"Based on interesting and relevant examples analysed through insightful theoretical lenses, Edward Hurcombe examines the concept of social news in this thoroughly researched and well-written book, packed with thought-provoking discussions that will deepen, expand, and challenge how we understand journalism's ongoing evolution".- Edson C. Tandoc Jr.,Associate Professor of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

This book is the first to define and describe 'social news', a new kind of journalism emerging in response to social media. Drawing on the author's extensive research into news and social media platforms, Social News critically examines the rise of well-known outlets such as BuzzFeed and Mic in the US, and Junkee and Pedestrian in Australia. Hurcombe argues that these outlets became successful by strategically engaging with social media, producing sociable content personalised for millennials. Such outlets have been criticised for violating the rules of 'quality' journalism. However, this book shows how social news has provided a platform for marginalised voices and has been able to engage readers neglected by legacy news. While social media is frequently seen as a threat to the news industry, Social News shows that digital platforms have been driving new forms of journalism: ones that challenge our understanding of what journalism is, can be, and should be.

Edward Hurcombe is a Research Associate in the Digital Media Research Centre at Queensland University of Technology, Australia. Edward researches how news and journalistic practice are transforming in relation to the technologies, economies, and user cultures of social media platforms. His research has been published in leading journals such as Journalism, Digital Journalism, and New Media & Society.