Data Journalism and the Impact of Politics: Examining Data Stories Produced Across Different Political Systems

Abstract

Data journalism in Western-centric research has been lauded for its contributions to investigative reporting and democracy, but forms and functions may vary across different political systems, as freedom of information laws and government attitudes towards data differ. This study examines 301 data stories produced by six prominent news outlets across different political systems – the liberal democracy, welfare state democracy, transitional democracy, electoral authoritarian regime, personalist dictatorship, and absolute monarchy – to discover how they vary in story assets and presentation, investigative elements, and journalistic norms and roles. Results indicate that data stories produced across all political systems have the tendency to focus on government and social issues, but when government influence and/or control of the press is greater, such stories based locally tend to be neutral in valence, feature fewer investigative and interactive elements, use government data sources and perform the civic role of the press. This is compared to stories based abroad, which may tend towards negative valence, contain more investigation and interactivity, feature more voices from civic society, and play a populist mobilizer role. That said, visualizations, objectivity, and transparency of data stories may be high across all political systems, with the news organization itself interpreting the data.

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