ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on how news websites constitute time. News institutions are thus constituted by certain rhythms, or news cycles, that structure working practices in relation to the publication of different types of journalistic products. Yet, the internet—along with mobile devices—allows for news consumption to be inserted into many more and smaller pockets of time throughout the day. A significant development in relation to news has been precisely a steadily decreasing interval of publication from annual, to quarterly, to monthly, fortnightly, weekly, several days a week, daily, hourly, and—with many online news sites—to every other minute. The speed of transmission and the shorter intervals of publication are significant aspects of this; and so is interactivity, which is important in relation to commentary and searchability. The most visible way of accumulation is the way most news stories are accompanied by, or contain, links to preceding and otherwise related stories.
