Convergence refers to a situation when media content flows across different platforms and media audiences spill over with it. Typical also is collaboration between diverse media industries. Thus, by its very nature, convergence is based on the combination of old and new media. Moreover, with the emergence of the internet, we have reached a stage where media are all around us and their uses can be combined. Suddenly, it is no longer a problem to watch a series on TV and simultaneously write about its content with friends via instant messaging. Similarly, convergence has led to the integration of different types of multimedia content into a single device – typically a smartphone or a computer. Specifically important for convergence is the internet, which “unlike traditional media, allows for both synchronous and asynchronous communication”. From a journalistic perspective, then, convergence is “the practice of sharing and cross-promoting content from a variety of media, some interactive, through newsroom collaborations and partnerships”. The exploration of how convergence has affected journalistic work has received significant interest in academia. For example, studies have examined how media outlets have managed to integrate newsrooms, how audiences are migrating, and how video-on-demand platforms have changed the consumption of audio-visual content. Moreover, convergence is a necessary condition for the emergence of a high-choice media environment characterized by a significant increase in sources audiences can choose for content that matches their current mood and appetite, or that is in line with their political attitudes – the fragmentation of media audiences.
