ABSTRACT
Current and interconnected processes of commercialisation, professionalisation, digitalisation, and globalisation have widened and revitalised the role of cultural journalism in society. These same processes have also blurred the boundaries of what may be labelled “cultural journalism,” and they have changed the role of the “cultural journalist.” Cultural journalism is more than the coverage of art, ballet, and literature-it also includes economic analyses of the cultural industries, debates on the social impact of contemporary media culture, as well as lifestyle perspectives and guidance on the “good life.” Cultural topicssuch as fashion, food, film, and television-are complex global phenomena, addressed and debated by journalists, cultural producers, experts, and pundits interchangeably as cultural and aesthetic phenomena, as conveyers or (co-)producers of consumption, lifestyles, and identities, and as omnipresent business ventures. This variety not only emphasises the challenging task of demarcating the field of cultural journalism. It also emphasises the fact that the media today allocate the role of cultural journalist, critic, or arbiter of taste to a miscellany of experts, media professionals, and celebrities from the cultural scene. Furthermore, digital technologies and participatory practices have challenged the professional logics of contemporary cultural journalism and criticism by allowing ordinary citizens or “amateurs” to engage in experience-based cultural debate and evaluation on multiple media platforms. This special issue of Journalism Practice wishes to address these transformations and their implications for the professional practice of cultural journalism and cultural critique.
