Mediatization: key concept or conceptual bandwagon?

Abstract

Mediatization is emerging as an influential new concept that places the media at the centre of all kinds of important cultural, political and social developments. However, it has so far attracted little critical evaluation. In this article the authors identify three areas of concern, namely, how causal processes are thought about, how historical change is understood, and how concepts are designed. It is hoped this article will contribute to the development of mediatization by generating critical debate and reflection, to prevent the term from being applied so inconsistently and indiscriminately that it becomes a 'concept of no difference'.

Mediatization and the Language of Journalism

“…In its current usage, mediatization refers loosely to an ongoing process of sociocultural change driven by the saturation of media(ted) communication in society. Defined as "the accrual of power created by the increased pervasiveness and autonomy of media institutions, values and technologies" (Deacon andStanyer, 2014: 1033), mediatization is an abstract and contested notion with remarkable social scientific appeal and scope. The term is used in analyses of tourism, war, health, religion, education, sports, and politics, among others.…”

“…In this sense, mediatization resembles the popularity of globalization, neoliberalism, and superdiversity in recent discussions of social change. Deacon and Stanyer (2014) discern two traditions of mediatization research in communication and journalism studies:…”

Welcome to the jungle: science communication in the mediatized society

“…At the same time the overall social influence of the media is increasing. Stig Hjarvard, a media theoretician, observes that the media "mould the way people communicate, act and sustain relationships with each other" [2]. This author points to a necessity of examining how science as an older activity is changing under the influence of the rather recent phenomenon (i.e.…”

“…This particular influence is the focus of study of a new media concept called mediatization, which has emerged in the last few years and which aims to research how different existing social systems change their inner rules and the ways they function to adopt (more or less consciously) a rationale based on the media logic. Although there have already appeared critical debates on the subject and the method of mediatization theory 1 , we attempt a review of articles on the topic of mediatization of science 2 . To achieve this, we combine insights from the field of information and communication sciences that can shed valuable light on this topic of interest.…”

“…There are two main approaches in studying the processes of mediatization, and this paper adopts both of them, each with regard to the theoretical background it originates from. First is the institutionalist approach where mediatization is seen as a process in which non-media social actors have to adapt to media's rules, aims, production logics [2] but also its constraints -an approach that originates from the discourse of the traditional mass media and the "broadcast era" [4]. The second approach looks at media from a socio-technical standpoint which sees mediatization as a process in which the changing information and communication technologies drive the changing communicative construction of culture and society [2] and which is usually connected to the uprise of the new media.…”