Building the journalistic paradigm: Beyond paradigm repair

Abstract

This essay posits a corollary to the notion of paradigm repair that explores how a journalistic paradigm gets built and formed over time. The essay seeks to historicize paradigm repair, showing that paradigm repair might be but one moment in the longer history of paradigm work. This essay uses US journalism history to point to five periods or activities of paradigm building: paradigm experimentation, inception, formalization, normalization, and reconsideration. Paradigm repair is a phenomenon of paradigm normalization. The essay considers implications for future paradigm work.