ABSTRACT
This chapter is devoted to the role of theory in digital journalism studies. It discussed a range of different theories adopted and used and what roles theory play. Digital journalism studies draws upon theories from a wide array of fields and disciplines, and scholars are willing to experiment with new theoretical framings, especially from science and technology studies. However, there is a degree of path-dependency related to adoptions of theoretical frameworks common in journalism studies, mostly related to sociological and political science perspectives. Perspectives from the humanities (especially cultural and language studies) are lacking, implying that the languages, discourses, and sense-making mechanisms of digital journalism are under-researched, at least in the research published in Digital Journalism.
