Journalistic Innovation from the Social Economy: Cooperatives, Sociedades Laborales and Popular Shareholders in Catalonia

Abstract

In a scenario of deep technological and socio-economic mutation, pioneers and peripheral actors gain importance in redefining journalism. These transformations are often related to the organizational models of the journalistic enterprise. Thus, in the recent years there is a proliferation of news media rooted in the social and solidarity economy, which drive innovation in multiple facets. This article focuses on organizational and social innovation, taking as a case of study the cooperatives, sociedades laborales and popular shareholder-companies in the press in Catalonia, a territory that has a strong cooperative tradition combined with a dense media system. The study census comprises 36 cases of newspapers and magazines from the Catalan press which adopt one of these legal structures throughout history. The methods used are analysis of metajournalistic discourses and semi-structured interviews. These types of organization are born out of the will of journalists and citizens to gain independence, editorial autonomy, and horizontal organization for a journalistic enterprise, in addition to a wider cooperative knowledge. In the current cases, there is a more determined approach to stabilization, professionalization, and social change. The current Catalan press cooperatives are a clear example of peripheral and innovative journalistic actors, especially in terms of organization and social impact, as also were the cases from the Transition and subsequent years, although they failed in consolidating these organizational models, which now appear to be stabilizing in the media landscape.