電視記者查證災難新聞之社群媒體依賴研究

Abstract

在突發的災難中，社群媒體讓使用者即時提供訊息，填補新聞記者不在現場而缺乏的資訊，確認事發經過與災情。不過，社群媒體的匿名性，及使用者相隔螢幕互動，使部分新聞記者對網路訊息存有疑慮，包含對社群媒體使用者，與其提供訊息的信任感。以媒介依賴理論視角而論，個人缺乏足夠訊息，需透過媒介訊息排疑解惑、完成目標，就會對媒介產生依賴。過去研究亦顯示，媒介依賴與信任具有相關性，故本研究援引此架構，初探新聞記者如何依賴社群媒體查證災難新聞，並關注新聞記者對社群媒體的信賴。\n\n本研究透過深度訪談法，訪問十位電視記者，了解電視記者報導自然災難，使用社群媒體達到社會理解、行動定向與互動定向等三目標，而在災難發生、救援與恢復重建等三階段，電視記者透過社群媒體取得的證據類型，以及其對社群媒體科技與人際信任信念的感知。本研究有四點主要發現：第一，電視記者使用社群媒體獲取證據，解決災難訊息缺乏之問題。第二，電視記者認為畫面有線索能比對網友所言，並能直接以畫面為證，故在災難三階段均偏好使用社群媒體獲取非供述證據。第三，電視記者對社群媒體使用者的人際信任信念為親身經歷與專業知識，並認為多數人出於善意地提醒，無蓄意欺騙或作假之動機。第四，電視記者對社群媒體的科技信任信念為其查證所需的五大功能，其中僅Facebook均具有，故十位電視記者皆表示對Facebook較為信任，視Facebook為查證災難必備工具。

Social media allows users to provide real-time information to supplement remote news media reports and confirm the events and severity of damages during emergency disasters. However, the anonymity of social media and how users interact through digital displays causes some reporters to harbor doubts towards information from the internet, including trust towards social media users and their provided information. From the perspective of media dependency, the individual lacks sufficient information and must utilize information from mediums to remove doubt and complete goals, thus producing a reliance on mediums. Past studies show a correlation between medium reliance and trust so this study will introduce this structure in a preliminary exploration of how news reporters rely on social media to investigate disaster news as well as focus on reporter trust in social media.\n\nThis study utilizes in-depth interviews with 10 TV Journalist to understand their use of social media for social understanding, action orientation, and interaction orientation when reporting natural disasters in the phases of occurrence, rescue, and rebuilding; the interviews will determine the types of evidence obtained by TV Journalist through social media as well as their perception of social media technology and interpersonal trust beliefs. This study made 4 primary discoveries: first, TV Journalist relies on social media to obtain evidence as a solution to insufficient disaster information. Second, TV Journalist believe that image evidence can be used to compare against statements made by internet users as well as directly provide images of evidence; thus, there is a preference to use non-testimonial evidence from social media in all 3 phases of a disaster. Third, the interpersonal trust beliefs of TV Journalist towards social media are based on personal experience and professional knowledge. There is the belief that most individuals provide information based on goodwill and do not harbor motivations to misinform or falsify. Fourth, TV Journalist utilize technology trust beliefs as one of the 5 major functions they require for verification; Facebook is the only social media held by all 10 reporters and they all expressed a stronger sense of trust towards Facebook and view it as a required tool for verifying disasters.