The Meso News-Space: Engaging with the News between the Public and Private Domains

Abstract

In the context of increasing dissatisfaction with the role of public-facing social media in democratic life, recent years show a growing number of non-public digital spaces in which people can produce, discuss, and share news. This article focuses on what we term a meso news-space: an online space, located between the private and public realms, where a group of people are involved in news-related processes. This space combines aspects that have long drawn participants to online communities—sociability, a sense of intimacy, and creative expression—with news engagement, an aspect considered important in democratic life. Potentially, meso news-spaces can facilitate greater reciprocity—mutual exchanges—between news workers and audience members, thereby promoting shared benefits. In this article, we explicate the concept of a meso news-space by considering its four key dimensions: platforms, topics, actors, and rules/guidelines, and discuss its value for journalism studies and practice. CONCEPT DEFINITION: Meso news-space.