Agnes Gulyas

Public service media are going through dramatic transformations as a result of technological developments, policy changes, market pressures and changes in media consumption. A significant part of this transformation is connected to the enhanced and novel roles of audience initiative to use and generate content. The scale and significance of the changes are still contested and the future of the provisions remains unclear. This book synthesises current debates on public service media and provides analysis of the key issues from an international perspective. It brings together leading researchers in the field and offers case studies from different countries. The book explores two main areas: the legacy of public service broadcasters in the digital age and new forms of public service media. Chapters in this collection address such fundamental questions about the future of public service media as: are the public ready to take on genuinely participatory roles? Do public service media organisations and professionals seriously consider shifting to a radically more demand-oriented production? How would changes in public service media impact political discourses and landscapes?

This article examines the current challenges in the local newspaper sector and explores what strategies companies have developed to adapt to the new market environment.  The article argues that the crisis of local newspapers is a revenue problem and not a readership problem and that the biggest challenge for local newspaper firms has been to find a new business model. Companies have introduced a number of different adaptation strategies. Many local news firms have streamlined their operations, moved towards to become more flexible organisations, diversified their portfolios putting more emphasis on online content and are attempting to diversify their financial models including third revenue streams. However, although the traditional business model has been modified, a new business model remains elusive and with that the economic future of local newspaper organisations remains uncertain.

This paper presents and analyses the findings of a recent survey about the uses and perceptions of social media among journalists in four European countries, United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden and Finland. Social media tools are widely used among European journalists, however the extent and purpose of social media use vary between countries. Findings of the survey suggest that UK journalists are the most avid users and are adopting newer social tools more readily. Germany and Sweden share similar patterns of social media use but with less commitment and reliance on social media than the UK. Finnish journalists while use social media tools rely more on traditional and established sources and are more critical of the newer social media tools compared to their European counterparts.
The survey also found that European journalists were engaging with different tools in all aspects of their work. For publishing and promoting work social networks, microblogs such as Twitter and blogs are the most frequently used. To source a story, personal contacts, PR sources and press releases and traditional news sources are most favoured. When verifying and authenticating a story personal contacts, corporate websites and Government/ public body websites are used mostly. Overall, however, social media tools are supplementing the resources and options available but not replacing the existing tools that journalists already use in their work.

Page 1. http://mcs.sagepub.com/ Media, Culture & Society http://mcs.sagepub.com/content/31/ 4/657 The online version of this article can be found at: DOI: 10.1177/0163443709335281 2009 31: 657 Media Culture Society Ágnes Gulyás findings preliminary −− ...

The Development of the Tabloid Press in Hungary Agnes Gulyas It is usually argued that the press system in Hungary—as in other East Central European countries-has been transformed from a Communist to a market-led liberal democratic media system during the post ...

... Fidesz employed several marketing tools widely used in Western democ-racies. The image of the party leader, later Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, Page 9. Hungary 75 ... Another high profile political scandal involved Viktor Orbán, who was Prime Minister between 1998 and 2002. ...