This article is a follow-up to an article published in the American Behavioral Scientist in 2017, titled “Shaping public opinion for confrontation: Catalan independence claims as represented in Spanish, Catalan, Valencian, and Basque Editorials.” At that time, our study was based on opinions expressed in mainstream newspaper editorials during two significant events in Catalonia’s recent history: the demonstration against the Spanish Constitutional Court ruling on the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of July 10, 2010, and the mass pro-independence demonstration held on September 11, 2012. The research sought to compare the press reports published in Catalonia, Valencia, and the Basque Country with those from the rest of Spain (primarily Madrid). This study applies the same methodology to analyze editorial pieces published during the campaign prior to the Catalan parliamentary elections on December 21, 2017. This date was historically significant for Catalonia because for the first time since the restoration of democracy following the Franco regime, the Spanish state had intervened in Catalonia’s self-rule by using Article 155 of the Spanish constitution to call snap elections. At the time, the lead candidates for the pro-independence parties were Oriol Junqueras (Republican Left of Catalonia) and Carles Puigdemont (Together for Catalonia), the former in prison and the latter abroad (or in “exile,” according to secessionists). In light of the opposing opinions and perspectives, we believe it is worth analyzing and comparing mainstream editorials from Catalonia (Barcelona) and Spain (Madrid) once again, to ascertain the dominant narratives used in both to explain the Catalan and Spanish position and frame of reference. We have extended the scope to include mainstream online as well as printed media with a view to achieving a better understanding and providing a wider overview of the public agenda and debate at that time.

We are in an era marked by misinformation, fake news, and a journalistic crisis. To the economic crisis that has resulted in the disappearance of jobs and numerous conventional media, especially in the printed press sector, one must add an intense crisis of trust. Among the options to escape from this situation, several communication theorists and some companies believe that blockchain technology offers new opportunities for high-quality journalism. Blockchain has its origin in electronic currencies, but it is increasingly being used in digital communication and journalism. This article is dedicated to the case of Civil, the first blockchain platform for journalism, which hosted tens of media, all accepting the commitment to respect the ethical standards imposed by the organization. This case study focuses on the following aspects: the mission and objectives of the Civil project, its origin and history, the structure and governance system of the organization, the role of the cryptocurrency itself, and the ethical principles and professional standards that govern the so-called Civil Community. In order to study Civil, we not only looked at the documents on its website and existing literature, but also carried out interviews with project members, some of them at its headquarters in New York. Likewise, we interviewed the person in charge of the first media that adopted blockchain technology through this platform. Resumen Nos encontramos en una era marcada por la desinformación, las fake news y la crisis del periodismo. A la crisis económica, que ha provocado la desaparición de puestos de trabajo y numerosos medios de comunicación convencionales, especialmente en el sector de la prensa impresa, hay que sumar una intensa crisis de confianza. Entre las opciones para intentar salir de esta situación, varios teóricos de la comunicación y algunas empresas consideran que la tecnología blockchain ofrece nuevas oportunidades al periodismo de calidad. La cadena de bloques tiene su origen en la moneda electrónica, pero cada vez está siendo más utilizada en la comunicación digital y el periodismo en particular. Este artículo está dedicado al caso de Civil, la primera plataforma de blockchain para periodismo, que alojaba a decenas de medios de comunicación que habían adquirido el compromiso de respetar las normas éticas impuestas por la organización. El presente estudio de caso centra su atención en los siguientes aspectos: la misión y objetivos del proyecto Civil, su origen e historia, la estructura y el sistema de gobernanza de la organización, la función de la criptomoneda propia y los principios éticos y normas profesionales que rigen la llamada Comunidad Civil. Para estudiar Civil no sólo nos hemos fijado en los documentos de su web y en la bibliografía existente, sino que llevamos a cabo entrevistas a miembros del proyecto, algunas en su sede de Nueva York. Asimismo, entrevistamos a la responsable del primer medio de comunicación que adoptó la tecnología blockchain a través de esta plataforma.

Since 2010 the Catalan secessionist movement has been reported on extensively in the global media. Beginning with the 2010 demonstrations against the decision of the Spanish Constitutional Court to reject a new Catalan statute of autonomy, and covering subsequent events such as the unofficial self-determination referendum in 2017, the trial and imprisonment of Catalan political leaders, and the violent protests against the verdicts; the events in the region have all featured heavily on the front pages of the international press. This study analyzes how US and UK newspapers have covered the Catalan independence movement during the period from 2010 to 2019. To do so, this study focuses on two US newspapers ( The New York Times and The Washington Post) and two from the UK newspapers ( The Daily Telegraph and The Guardian) and observes how the positions of the Spanish and Catalan governments are represented through the analysis of the frames used to construct the newspapers’ coverage, as well as the overall tone and the sources used by the journalists. To detect the dominant framework, a framing analysis is undertaken from a communicative and deductive perspective, applying Semetko and Valkenburg’s classification. In-depth interviews are also conducted with the newspapers’ Spanish-based foreign correspondents which allows the analysis to include the correspondents’ views on the difficulties faced by them during their time spent while covering the conflict. The study’s primary conclusion is that the international press downplays the significant role played by social movements and civil society in the secession movement, with a strong preference shown by journalists to rely on representatives of official sources as the most valid spokespersons for the movement. Secondly, the study finds that media attention follows closely the flash-points of the conflict with more coverage appearing at the moments of greater political tension between the Spanish and Catalan governments. This suggests that civil society mobilizations attract less interest from the media that instead prefers to focus on developments in the political sphere.