Lynn Schofield Clark’s New Book Receives Top Award from the Association of Internet Researchers

Lynn Schofield Clark, along with her co-author Regina Marchi, will receive the Nancy Baym Annual Book Award from the international Association of Internet Researchers for their book Young People and the Future of News: Social Media and the Rise of Connective Journalism.

Winners of the Nancy Baym Annual Book Award are considered among the best work in the field of Internet Studies. Three distinguished scholars select a winner from books, published in the prior calendar year, covering internet research and highlighting the social and cultural dimensions of networked media.

Young People and the Future of News follows the evolution of journalism as young people seek and share news via social media or friends rather than relying solely on news organizations.

“Young people don’t consume news the way adults did (or do), but this doesn’t mean that they’re uninterested in what’s going on,” Clark says. “In fact, research is suggesting that, overall, this is a very engaged generation.”

The book follows the news habits of high school students from four U.S. urban areas over the last 10 years. The authors’ findings show that young people are using social media, rather than traditional news channels, to share news that matters most to them, and in so doing, they are laying the ground work for greater political action among themselves and their friends.

Young People and the Future of News will be presented with the award at the Association of Internet Researchers annual conference taking place October 10–13 in Montreal.

Read more about Young People and the Future of News from the Cambridge University Press, including the book summary, reviews, and detailed information, or visit the book’s website and blog.

Lynn Schofield Clark is the department chair and professor in the Media, Film and Journalism Studies department, and is also the director of the Estlow International Center for Journalism and New Media. Regina Marchi is an associate professor in the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at the Rutgers University.