The first step in studying the single-subject news model was to define it. What is it? Who runs it? How do we validate any given example? What separates a blog from what should be considered a bona fide digital news source? For the sake of this study we set interim parameters on the model, a defined scope for how we identified 20 emerging examples. The detailed criteria are stated in our published scope of study on the Tow Center website.2 In synopsis, a single-subject news outlet as defined in our research requires: 1. In-Depth: A website must address one topic in depth, delving into a single story with a single angle within a broader story; it brings a narrow focus on a topic perceived by the founder to be underreported and underserved within mainstream sources. 2. Narrow in Scope: The topic addressed must be sufficiently narrow in scope. For example, a website that deals with “U.S. News” as a topic is not a single subject website but one that deals with “U.S. Healthcare” on an in-depth level is because it addresses 2 Kristin Nolan and Lara Setrakian, “The Rise of the Single-Subject Platform,” Tow Center for Digital Journalism. Tow Center for Digital Journalism, Columbia University, 28 Aug. 2013. Web. 28 Aug. 2013.
a niche audience within a larger topic, filling a gap in available information about that issue. Often, the test of a niche news site will come in the website’s audience; the target audience, or user base, will reflect the relatively narrow focus of the reporting. 3. Fact Based: The website must feature a clear emphasis on factbased reporting versus opinion. For instance, some blogs may have similar characteristics to a single-subject website in topical focus, however, if they are overwhelmingly based on opinion, rather than reporting the facts, then we would not consider them eligible for this study. Similarly, “conspiracy theory” websites aimed at promoting or debunking a particular point of view would not be considered in this study. 4. Origins Online: The organization must have its origins online rather than converted from a prior publication or existing news media outlet. The rationale behind this qualifier is to highlight the rising trend of entrepreneurial websites designed to fill a gap, not a pre-existing news provider that transitioned to the online market. 5. Independently Funded: The website must be funded by non-governmental sources by private actors (i.e. nongovernmental entities). 6. Exemption: The focus must be differentiated from that of a hyperlocal city newspaper. City newspapers, while niche in focus, are not eligible for this study. While many city newspapers conduct in-depth investigative research on issues of local importance, this coverage tends not to go to the national level,
and therefore does not fill a gap in mainstream media, although there are clear exceptions of cases where a local story has gone national. 7. Exemption: We also limited our scope to English-language publishers as an expediency measure. While there are many concrete examples of non-English sources who do in-depth investigative journalism, due to the language constraints of the Research Team, these sources are unable to be studied at this time. Within these boundaries there is a great diversity of models and approaches to executing the single-subject mandate. Yet there is a consistency to their experience, along with shared challenges related to the focus and format of their journalistic endeavors.