Virality and online news platforms : a study into virality as a potential factor in the emerging and changing practices of journalism in Malta

Abstract

Virality has lent itself to popular culture over the course of the 21st century with the continuous rise of digital and visual culture (Rushkoff, 1996). This dissertation mainly aims to investigate the concept of virality in relation to journalism in the context of news outlets in Malta by analysing the content they post on social media. The study will be reinforced by theories centred about virality, social networking sites and journalism. This dissertation focuses on a relatively new area of study centred about the intersection of virality and journalistic practices and considers virality as a potential factor in the emerging and changing practices of journalism in Malta.