This Policy Brief is built on the findings of a Clwstwr funded R&D project, News Storytelling through Modular Journalism, and introduces the seven building blocks of reflective journalism.
Data collected from interviews, focus groups and the development of innovative prototypes – which underwent extensive user testing with more than 1000 audience members - suggest multiple new ways of narrative storytelling that point the way to more effective forms of news.
We find that by focusing on content that is genuinely useful to readers and viewers, using linear narratives, providing broader context, and giving users more agency in how they engage with stories, it is clearly possible to provide news which is trusted, informative and engages audiences from all demographics.
The lead author on the report is journalist Shirish Kulkarni, who has been researching and developing News Storytelling through Modular Journalism as the focus of his Clwstwr project since September 2019.
Shirish said: “The journalism industry is facing a number of interlocking existential challenges which need radical responses. Our storytelling research provides clear evidence that changing the journalistic mindset, to focus more clearly on the information needs of citizens, can have dramatic effects.
"By reconnecting with the fundamental purpose of journalism, and using the full range of digital tools available to us, it’s possible to produce news stories that are more informative, more engaging and more efficient. For journalists, newsrooms and – most importantly – citizens, that’s a big win.”
You can download the full report here:
This research report was authored by:
Shirish Kulkarni
Shirish Kulkarni is a former BBC, ITN and Sky News Journalist currently running media production company Monnow Media Ltd. His Clwstwr project, News Storytelling through Modular Journalism, explored how stories can be told most effectively, created most efficiently and understood more comprehensively. As a result he has developed the seven building blocks of reflective journalism as detailed above.
Dr Marlen Komorowski, Impact Analyst
Marlen performs the impact analysis of Clwstwr’s interventions (and creative industries more generally) in South Wales. She is also associated as Senior Researcher with the research centre imec-SMIT-VUB (Studies on Media, Innovation & Technology) in Brussels. As a researcher, her work focuses on media and creative industries-related projects, impact analysis, industry clustering, ecosystem and value network analysis, new business models and the impact of the digitisation on industries and firms.
Professor Justin Lewis, Director
Justin Lewis, Clwstwr's Director, is Professor of Communication and Creative Industries (and former Head of School) at Cardiff University's School of Journalism, Media and Culture, with a particular interest in news innovation. He has conducted research with many different creative organisations, including the BBC, the BBC Trust, Channel 4, the Guardian, as well as UK and European Research councils. He has published over 100 books, journal articles and chapters about a wide range of media and cultural issues. He is Chair of the Independent Community News Network and Chair of one of the UK Government Research Excellence Framework Panels. Justin's vision for the project is for Wales to become the clever little country that shows how a creative cluster based on SME's, micro-businesses and freelancers can become world leader in creativity.
Dr Richard Thomas
Dr Richard Thomas is a Senior Lecturer in Media and Communication at Swansea University. Richard’s research concerns the quantifying and qualifying of the trends and patterns in the ways that economics, business, finance, politics and conflict are covered by news outlets ranging from TV and radio to online blogging and social media.