The advance of autonomous public televisions in the convergent scenario: analysis of transmedia journalistic experiences in EITB and CCMA

Abstract

As occurred with the multipurpose terms ‘interactive’ or ‘digital’ in their day, new interpretations have arisen recently, for example neologisms ending in ‘-media’ (hypermedia, multimedia, cross-media, transmedia – the fashionable word par excellence) and other expressions such as multiscreen, multiplatform, integration or prosumer. All of them serve to reflect the current effervescence in the audio-visual field and mark out a new stage associated with the phenomena of multimedia convergence and active audiences. In this scenario dominated by the ‘mantra’ of innovation, the autonomous public televisions in Spain are striving to maintain their leading position or to survive, depending on the case. In addition to implementing processes of digitalisation and adjusting infrastructures, these corporations have reinforced their online assets, implementing multiplatform strategies that aim to extend their public service beyond television. More recently, some of these corporations have shown their interest in taking a further step towards strategies of a transmedia type. Employing a qualitative methodology based on content analysis and in-depth interviews, this article examines the transmedia audio-visual productions of two of the leading autonomous public broadcasters, Corporació Catalana de Mitjans Audiovisuals (CCMA) and Euskal Irrati Telebista (EITB). There are multiple ways of approaching this type of audio-visual productions, which are symptomatic of the advance towards a new stage in which quality is measured using other criteria.