The Merits and Challenges of Using Business Press and Trade Journal Reports in Academic Research on Media Industries

As processes of globalization, audience segmentation, enhanced interactivity and technological changes transform media industries worldwide it becomes increasingly difficult for academic media researchers to stay current with industry developments. This article argues that media researchers should pay closer attention to the benefits and potential pitfalls of using business press and industry trade journal reports to inform academic research. To date, the use of these secondary sources in scholarly research concerning media industries has received little interest, as demonstrated in a preliminary examination of how academic literature and research methods textbooks treat the business press and trade journal reports. The authors call for a dialogue on this significant oversight, and offer suggestions for how researchers might begin addressing it as media across the globe grow in scope and influence during the 21st century.