Culture section today. From theoretical descriptions to practical reality. Case study of print media in Spain

Abstract

This paper studies the Culture section of the printed media with the aim of specifying the coherence between the theoretical proposals of the researchers and the practical exercise of the profession, as reference the case of Spain. A bibliographic review of theoretical and empirical proposals is developed, to relate the works that suggest how this specialization should be and the research results who describe what it is like in practice. Is there a gap between the two? And if so, where are the differences? Digital pressure favors imbalances between scientific and academic contributions and work routines. This approach serves as the basis for the case study in the printed versions of El País, ABC and El Mundo, where the comparative content analysis method has been applied. We observe the weight of the section in relation to the rest of the newspaper, issues, journalistic genres and complementary elements used. The paper concludes that there are coincident theoretical aspects and others that remain in utopias, as well as the evidence that this specialization is in process of transformation and innovation, partly influenced by its digital environment.