The media has an important role in promoting work within the platform economy as well as investigating and reporting on the issues faced by platform workers.
Press release journalism: Newsrooms are economically challenged leading to a vulnerability to reproducing press releases as news and a reliance on institutional sources, including platform company narratives. Boosterism of the platform economy can emerge from this context.
Reductive content: The tendency to reduce complex stories to simple issues works against robust discussion of the complex issues of platform work. Researchers and advocates seeking to publicise studies must work within this vocabulary and framework which may weaken their capacity to circulate adequate representations of workers’ concerns.
Researcher media engagement needs to be articulated as a form of worker advocacy; greater public-facing and open access publication of studies and findings.
The nature of platform work is broadly defined and constantly changing. We welcome suggestions of additions or amendments to this list. Please email
P-WILL@publicpolicy.rs
Produced by Working Group 1 members (WG leaders: Dr. Kylie Jarrett and Dr. Jing Hiah) with contributions from all working groups of the P-Will COST Action (CA21118)