Dissertation

My dissertation question is now set.

Handed in this morning and 'signed off', its all official.

And my work load is going to get even more official!!!!

My research question is as follows:

‘How does the presence of the internet allow for a more complex change of cultural ideas, challenging the dominance of powerful global media and ‘westernized’ news values?'

Textual analysis of news websites and blogs will be carried out during my research and as part of my methodology. I will be looking at how citizen journalism and bloggers can impact on the discourse of professional news websites.

I will research the internet and the affect that its presence has on traditional news reporting, and how it creates a contra-flow of news, and look into the flow of news and contra-flow theories within my research.

When carrying out my research I will specifically be interested in looking at the ability that consumers have to create and uphold a complex exchange of ideas and values (reflecting on consumer culture) and how the presence of the internet affects this, and supports the challenge against dominant media.

I will carry out further research into whether dominant new media make ‘note’ of individual voices and interpretations of current news affairs, and how, and perhaps why they do this.

I will also carry out further research in how the internet has created an online community of news consumers and reporters that express their cultural values and views to a what is becoming ‘liberal’ online community, and how and why this is, and do they share the same values as each other, and how do these idea challenge the flow of westernized news values.


I will concentrate on how the internet is a vessel for discourse in the public and professional domain (online), and how it has created a platform for ‘consumers’ to exchange various ideas and values and how it challenges the one-way monolithic flow of western news values. I will research into the interactivity that the internet allows ‘consumers’ to have with the media, looking at alternative online medium such as audio and visual enhancements online, news forums and vlogs (video blogs), and how this challenges the flow and values if westernized news.


...there is alot to be getting on with, and Lit reviews for me to get my teeth into.

until next time.