Local Data Journalism in Germany: Data-driven Reporting Amidst Local Communities and Authorities

Abstract

This study explores data journalism within local and regional news organisations in Germany. Findings were drawn from nine semi-structured in-depth interviews with journalists working with local and regional dailies. Weischenberg’s model of contextual layers of journalism provides theoretical underpinnings to capture normative, structural, and functional insights as well as data journalists’ role conceptions. Results show that viable data is scarce at a local level and data journalists actively seek to maintain good relationships with local authorities to be granted access to data. The practice of data journalism at the local level depends on a few data journalism advocates who institutionalise the practice in their local newsrooms and take training on their own initiative. Local data journalists face similar constraints to their colleagues working for national organisations. Data-driven newswork is carried out in addition to regular duties, and collaboration with specialist correspondents who work on-site is widely reported. We find that the combination of traditional shoe-leather epistemologies of on-site reporting with data-driven practices can add to the independence and neutrality of local journalism.