Journalism research defines domestication as a tendency in foreign reporting to frame international news by applying a domestic lens and national logic. Events and processes abroad are connected to or embedded in national contexts. Journalists “domesticate” news from abroad by giving voice to domestic actors, referring to events in their own country, or demonstrating the relevance of the international event for national interests and actors. The logic at work is that this will make news from abroad more appealing and comprehensible to domestic audiences. In that sense, domestication is a technique to reduce the complexity of international or global phenomena: Audiences are presented with frames they are already familiar with and that are considered relevant for them. By domesticating the news, journalists “translate” and interpret what is happening abroad, thereby reproducing reality, and creating certain images of foreign countries and international developments. Not only audiences, but also the journalists covering the news, may struggle to fully understand the relevant national logics, cultural and other contextual factors behind events and processes abroad. Events and processes taking place abroad that are easier to domesticate are thus generally considered as more newsworthy compared to events or processes that are more difficult to embed in the domestic context.
Domestication has received widespread criticism, for example as a factor contributing to bias and stereotypes in international news. However, domestication is also considered helpful in that it assists national audiences to better comprehend events and processes abroad: Connecting the international with the national or local may ultimately foster increased understanding of developments abroad and highlight the relevance of foreign news. By contrast, the opposite view has also been raised – domestication may turn foreign news into a factor countervailing rather than furthering globalization, as it perpetuates national imageries. However, in the age of globalization, it may be difficult or even impossible to distinguish between “national” and “international” news. The domestication concept has also met criticism due to its emphasis on journalistic agency at the expense of other actors contributing to the travelling of ideas and concepts in an interconnected world. Further, a dichotomy of “domestic” and “foreign” may fall short of explaining many events and processes. This has led to calls to enhance a more cosmopolitan approach to reporting the news, as signified by concepts such as Global Journalism. Yet, the categories of “domestic” and “foreign” have remained firmly embedded in the contents and structures of foreign reporting. Innovative approaches such as cross-border journalism can thus be seen as a means to promote reporting that is firmly embedded in both national and international contexts at the same time.
