ABSTRACT
Early incursions into the tabloid genre date from the nineteenth century with experimental publications designed to appeal to popular taste, but it was only during the ensuing century that the term gained specific application to print media. The tabloid press became increasingly specialized in the techniques of connecting reports on consumer products to economics and celebrity gossip to popular culture. The transition from the printed press to online news websites represented a qualitative leap that changed readership and reflected structural transformations associated with platform design, and website layout. The chapter describes the ongoing disruption in the ecosystem of tabloid press caused by digital and social media; changes that stem from a changing landscape of media production, shifting audience demographics, as well as structural modifications in the business model and funding strategies. Different forms of journalism practices are enabled by different physical media, which in turn enforce specific cultural and professional practices that feedback into the content.
