Contemporary Digital Journalism in Bulgaria

Abstract

The paper aims to identify the level of transformation of contemporary digital journalism in Bulgaria in view of the influence of technologies in the process of media content creation. The authors interviewed ten online media journalists and experts. The results reveal the current state of Bulgarian online media and journalism regarding the recognition and use of cultural software for creating digital media content. The interviewee’s responses helped outline some of the ongoing professional transformations in Bulgarian online journalism, problems with the paradigm shift regarding journalistic labour, trends in new media content consumption and quality in view of form diversity and topic significance. The conclusions show that Bulgarian online journalists adapt to new technologies and are optimistic about their general influence on journalism. On the other hand, they are critical of the effects of social software. Among the main challenges, the interviewees point out the necessity of quick action, increased work volumes, the large number of potential sources of information, the merging of a multitude of professional roles into one. Interviewees consider long reads, vertical and square videos, the 360-degree photos and videos to be the best-known forms of new media content; infographics turn out to be the most popular way to present visual content. Generally, they recommend using more visual content, adding podcasts, which allows the information to dive into deeper contexts. While taking the local audience habits into consideration, the research showed that a significant portion of Bulgarian online journalism follows the global tendencies. Our goal was to talk to professionals who work for established media brands and are guided by the immutable professional standards, thereby respected and trusted by the audience.

Keywords

• online media
• new media forms
• digital journalism
• digital content
• media narrative
• visual content