Global news flow


Global news flow is a field of study that deals with the news coverage of events in foreign countries. It describes and explains the flow of news from one country to another.
Studies on global news flow typically attempt to understand why certain countries are more newsworthy than others.. Along the years it has been found that the economic power of countries plays a particularly crucial role in their news prominence as well as the presence of international news agencies. Thus, the US has been found to be very prominent in news mentions around the world, followed by China, Western European and Middle Eastern countries.
The unequal representation of the world and the under-representation of developing countries have been already of a great concern at least since the 1950s, since they influence the way people perceive the world and the image of countries. This problem was later addressed in the MacBride report, and his set of recommendations for a New World Information and Communication Order. The unequal representation of the world has been also linked to the World System Theory, and the unequal economic structure of the world.
Recent empirical studies show that among online news websites and news aggregators the unequal representation of the world has been perpetuated and even further intensified. Economically powerful countries, as well as their opponent countries get the most news coverage around the world.
Newsworthy measurement in Global News Flow
In current news-flow theory, three methods are used to measure newsworthy between countries. First variable is national traits. National traits involves measure of the size of a country and its economic, political, and military power. Countries with better economic stands and higher political reputation tends to gain more newsworthy and trusteeship in global news flow. Second variable is relatedness, namely proximity to that foreign country. Countries that are related in terms of geography or demography with cultural similarity tends to gain more newsworthy in global news flow. Last variable is events. Countries that are currently involved with national events or conflicts tends to have more newsworthy in global news flow, especially countries that are experiencing political, economic, and social changes.
Imperialism and Dependency in Global News Flow
Throughout the history of global news flow, media imperialism played popular role with the attitude of focused on global information flows where news and entertainment content was considered to move one direct way. The global news flow has been an efficient tool for developed nations to gain their profits from developing nations. The imperialism in global news flow continued with neo-imperialism in global news flow with the structural communications theory and media dependency in global news flow. Dependency in global news flow is explained with evidence from developing countries/Third World regions around the globe points. In the flow in global news, these countries maintaining a heavy reliance by LDCs on the West for international news. The conclusion in dependency in global news flow is that Western news values have come to dominate media in the global south. With higher values and newsworthy, Western agencies interpret to set the agenda for developing countries' media as they influencing what topics get covered.
System and Changes in Global News Flow
In global news flow, there are "gatekeepers" who operate on an international scale. It can be seen as helper as people lack systematic knowledge about what news goes where in the world at what length and in what form. This model of processes in global news flow involved in the movement of news among nations. In this model of processes, there is the international communication chain with the receiver-the reader, listener or viewer, "internationalization". In this system of an international chain, major press and times in Big-Four contributes the international news information. At the end of global news flow and its system, news consumers may receive a very different product from initial resource due to system of global news flow.
Changes in Global News Flow started with the potential of technological innovation. With a result from a comparative analysis, the internet plays the major key in the global news flow. Moreover, current study concludes the contribution in global news flow with a perspective on the technological influence on national level of both politics and economy markets as their primary sources of influence. Main resources covered in global news with developed technology are international politics, military and defense, and internal order. The technologies and its innovations did change the method and partial system in global new flow with easier access to news and information. Even with these changes in global news flow, the internet could not change the traditional imbalance in media coverage of international news between developed countries and developing countries.