Media hiperlokalne - nowy element systemu społecznego komunikowania

Abstract

The dynamic changes in the processes of social communication connected with technological development generate a multiplicity of new phenomena connected with the circulation of information and exchange of opinions on the lowest levels of the social structure. The article constitutes an attempt at presenting a few reflections on the topic of the so-called hyperlocal media, including the overview of current state of the discipline as well as issues accompanying the attempts at grasping the phenomenon from the academic point of view, in the context of media systems theories. These types of media are targeted at small communities of neighbors, acquaintances or hobbyists. They emerge from the real needs of those communities, which remain to a large extent outside the scope of interest for traditional media. In the article, the author discusses the genesis and development of this new phenomenon, as well as the forms and methods of functioning and the characteristics of active subjects on the hyperlocal level of the media system.