Points, badges, and news. A study of the introduction of gamification into journalism practice

Abstract

Several news media have started to introduce gamification techniques into their digital platforms as a new storytelling format for news consumption. Since habit strength is the most powerful predictor of news consumption, the goal is to not only engage news consumers, but also to provide a personalized news experience and to persuade users to foster the habit of consuming news regularly. However, there is a large research gap in the intersection of journalism and gamification. This article aims to discern how digital news media have introduced game mechanics into their online platforms, and the logic which it serves. This assessment is primarily based on four case studies of gamified news: The Guardian, The Times of India, Bleacher Report, and Al Jazeera. The results are ambivalent since the driving forces of the implementation process combine an attempt to engage users and a set of commercial motivations.

KEYWORDS: journalism practice; gamification; commercialization; digital journalism; storytelling; news.