`Tabloidization' of News

TLDR

The term “tabloidization” is widely used by journalists, media critics, and academics to describe a recent dubious trend in mass media. The article aims to define the diffuse, multidimensional concept of tabloidization and assess its usefulness for communication research. The study employs a long‑term cross‑national design that compares quality news media in Britain and Germany (with the US as a reference) using a broad set of empirical measures. A three‑step empirical analysis shows that journalistic values, media cultures, and economic and legal conditions determine the degree of tabloidization in a country.

Abstract

`Tabloidization' is a new, frequently used term equally employed by journalists, media critics and academics to characterize a recent, dubious trend in the mass media. This article sets out to define this diffuse, multidimensional concept and discusses its usefulness for communication research. It emerges that `tabloidization' can only be analysed adequately with a long-term cross-national design that focuses on quality news media and employs a wide range of empirical measures. This approach is taken here by comparing the press of Britain, Germany and the US, whereas the focus remains on the first two countries. A three-step empirical analysis — based on a definition developed before — demonstrates that journalistic values, media cultures as well as economic and legal conditions are responsible for the degree of `tabloidization' in a given country.