Description
Book SynopsisSylvain Parasie examines how data journalists and news organizations have navigated the tensions between traditional journalistic values and new technologies. Offering an in-depth analysis of how computing has become part of the daily practices of journalists, this book proposes ways for journalism to evolve in order to serve democratic societies.
Trade ReviewComputing the News is a brilliant account of the potential of technological practice for the renewal of media work and its implications for society at large. Building on his extensive comparative research, Sylvain Parasie has crafted a book that is poised to become a must-read for scholars, analysts, and practitioners. -- Pablo J. Boczkowski, author of
Abundance: On the Experience of Living in a World of Information PlentyComputing the News is required reading for anyone studying data journalism. Weaving together deep sociological insights with much-needed historical context, Parasie expertly parses how the field has tactfully integrated data and computing while maintaining normative commitments. -- Nicholas Diakopoulos, author of
Automating the News: How Algorithms Are Rewriting the MediaJournalists and future journalists will find in this book a necessary ethical roadmap for the use of data and algorithms, rooted in an in-depth analysis of best practices and pitfalls in U.S. and French media. For journalism scholars, this is a must-read book, featuring wonderfully crafted research on technological innovations. -- David Domingo, Université Libre de Bruxelles
Yes, journalism is knowledge! In this book, Parasie brilliantly shows how all the tricky aspects of doing research—questioning where data come from, reflecting on bias and exclusion, understanding how institutions influence what we see—are crucial aspects of news and what it is for: making truths public. -- Noortje Marres, author of
Digital Sociology: The Reinvention of Social ResearchTable of ContentsList of Figures
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Trying to Be Nonjudgmental
Part I. Two Paths to Data Journalism1. Revealing Injustice with Computers, 1967–1995
2. Rankings; or, The Unintended Consequences of Computation, 1988–2000
Part II. A Challenge for Journalism3. Rebooting Journalism
4. A Tale of Two Cultures?
5. The Tensions Facing Data Journalism
Part III. Data Journalism in the Making6. The Making of a Revelation
7. How Not to Get Academic
8. The Art of Bringing About Publics
Conclusion: An Ethics of Reflexivity
Notes
Bibliography
Index
