Beyond Media Markets: Media Ecosystem Research for Policy Making, Policy Analysis, and Policy Advocacy

Wednesday, November 30, 10:00 a.m.

233 Wilson Hall

Guest Speaker:  Philip Napoli, Fordham University

Many media policy issues need to be grounded in assessments of the structure and dynamics of local media markets. Traditionally, such assessments have focused on levels of competition and ownership diversity at the local level. However, as local media systems have grown more complex, in terms of structure, participants, and content flows, such analytical approaches are increasingly inadequate for informing contemporary media policy debates. This presentation examines these shifting information needs and describes ongoing efforts to develop a more comprehensive analytical approach grounded in the notion of media ecosystems, that seeks to account for the changing array of information sources at the local level; the flows of new and information within and across media platforms; and the relevant dynamics of citizen media usage and exposure patterns.