ABSTRACT
Exploring the 'intended' act of journalism preempts any discussion of journalism in its myriad forms from the traditional newspaper or broadcast to the more diverse media of interlopers. The process of social construction of the field can be explored in three aspects: journalistic identity, journalistic intention, and journalistic realization. Journalistic identity may at first blush seem obvious: identifying as a journalist. However, in a digital context, identity has become a contested aspect of social belonging with regard to the field and the validity of this identification is often a point of contention. While anyone can identify as a journalist, when positive expressions of identity are present, they open actors up to the evaluation of their performances of journalism. As much as identity is important, it is not one-dimensional and people's consideration of its presence should not be either. For the ways that interlopers communicate, corollary identity expressions offer unique ways of seeing how an individual or organization understands the field.
