Vigilant journalism: the impact of lateral surveillance on journalists’ lives

This research argues that the technological means that allowed the development of citizen journalism can be redirected towards journalists themselves. It investigates the surveillance capacity that resides in the hands of citizens, and the extent to which this potential is being used. It argues that the existing power structures can attempt to co-opt the public into the surveillance apparatus, recruiting the citizens as proxy-agents of surveillance. The research draws its theoretical foundations from the field of surveillance studies in line with the tradition started by Michel Foucault and updated by scholars such as David Lyon and his “liquid surveillance”. The project adopts a qualitative, mixed-method approach that involves two case studies and 12 semi-structured interviews conducted with media professionals, whose background and direct experiences with surveillance provided in-depth insights and information. The study reaches its findings through content and thematic analysis. Turkey and Italy were selected as case studies, with a comparative approach that aims at understanding the phenomena underlying the emergence of citizen-driven surveillance practices and the consequences on the professional and private lives of journalists. The research points at a synthesis between the two paradigms, the Foucauldian panopticon and liquid surveillance by David Lyon, as an innovative combined framework to understand surveillance practices that both threaten and empower journalism, by harvesting from the experiences of selected journalists working in the field. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the environment in which journalism operates, how surveillance technologies and cultures shape it, and what threats and opportunities arise for journalism from states and non-state actors in this quickly developing scenario