Metrics at Work: Journalism and the Contested Meaning of Algorithms (2020, Princeton University Press)

When the news moved online, journalists suddenly learned what their audiences actually liked, through algorithmic technologies that scrutinize web traffic and activity. Has this advent of audience metrics changed journalists’ work practices and professional identities? In Metrics at Work, Angèle Christin documents the ways that journalists grapple with audience data in the form of clicks, and analyzes how new forms of clickbait journalism travel across national borders.

Awards

Winner, 2022 Viviana Zelizer Best Book Award in Economic Sociology (American Sociological Association)

Honorable Mention, 2022 CITAMS Best Book Award (American Sociological Association)

Reviews

Reviewed in the American Journal of Sociology, British Journal of Sociology, European Journal of Sociology, Journal of Cultural Economy, Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, International Journal of Communication, European Journal of Communication, LSE Review of Books, Public Books, Sydney Review of Books, La Vie des Idées, Sociologie, MedieKultur, Rivisteweb, Revue Zilsel, Sciences Humaines, etc.

Podcasts & Interviews

New Books Network, with Dave O’Brien

DigiLabor, with Rafael Grohmann