One subject, many paths. Transmedia communication in journalism

Abstract

Transmedia communication is used mainly in fiction, but also in journalism. This paper analyzes the informational synergy of transmedia in the news field. Through a conceptual digression, we discuss the word transmedia, as defined by Jenkins (2006), cross-media and multimedia, explaining the differences between all those concepts – sometimes treated by some authors as synonyms, although they are not. The ideas are revisited and verified through the study of Inside Disaster, a Canadian documentary about the 2010 Haitian earthquake that offers news by means of game, hypertext and video. Above all, we propose a reflection on the implications of the transmedia experience applied to journalism, a look at transmedia communication thinking not only about technology, but searching for a cultural and social interpretation, in a cultural perspective of the study of technology and journalism.