Förorten brinner!
En studie av alternativa medier i Stockholms förorter
SuburbAlternative MediaRadical MediaMillion ProgrammeStockholmCitizen journalismDemocracyFörortAlternativa medierRadikala medierMiljonprogramStockholmMedborgarjournalistikDemokrati
In this study we examine five selected media organisations with different forms of productionplatforms that all appear in Stockholm's southern and western suburbs, which are part of themillion-construction project. Their stated ambition is to present an alternative image of thesuburbs than that found in mainstream media. They want to portray themselves instead ofconstantly being described by others.The purpose of the study is to gain a better understanding of the reason for the emergenceof these media, their visions according to the media producers themselves, and how theyrelate to mainstream media. The study is based on a theoretical framework that focuses ondiverse approaches of alternative media and the journalists' role in a democratic society.The wide data analysis from qualitative informant interviews, with small observations as acomplement, showed results indicating criticism against the misrepresentation of Stockholmsuburbs in mainstream media. Furthermore the results show that the overall dissatisfaction ofthis misrepresentation is one of the main reasons why the different media, which are bothrepresented by citizens and journalists, were founded. The founders saw their work either as areaction to this misrepresentation or as a way to fill a gap in their community. The localpapers we visited embraced the notion of citizen journalism, which proved to be a part offilling the mentioned gap, while other organisations expressed political goals. In summary,there were similarities between the media organisations in terms of problem definition as wellas differences in how they approached these problems. Furthermore the analysis confirmedthe democratic shortage that is experienced in these areas, and that these media therefore aretrying to oppose. They provide the local community they operate in with news, informationand opinion, but they also aim to be a platform for participation and discussion.