You can’t censor live: technology acceptance drives Central Asian journalists to mobile and helps them overcome press restrictions

Abstract

In post-soviet countries, newer technologies have revolutionized the media – from being pro-government to hosting independent and citizen media to bypass censorship. This study looks at how news editors, managers, and journalists embrace technological change, especially when audiences are most engaged with online media. Audiences have been active on social media for years and mobile penetration rates are rising in Central Asia. Mobile technology especially promises more press freedom, but some organizations are hesitant to go mobile first. Through a series of in-depth interviews, the researchers asked journalists, broadcasters, and bloggers in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan how they use technology and their challenges. Many journalists said that they felt they were always on call or that new technology was too expensive. However, many outlets found solutions to these obstacles. Central Asian media companies connect with audiences using live streaming and social media and by developing their own technology. Journalists too have found solutions to censorship by using virtual private networks or private chats. Our findings show that journalists globally face similar issues with new technology. Our study explores how creativity and invention can overcome technical issues to improve transparency to meet audiences where they already are.

Keywords:

• Mobile journalism
• Central Asia
• technology acceptance model
• online journalism
• social media
• censorship

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).