YAPAY ZEKÂ ÇAĞINDA NİŞ MEDYA VE GAZETECİLİĞİN DÖNÜŞÜMÜ: SİSTEMATİK BİR LİTERATÜR TARAMASI

Abstract

Bu çalışma, yapay zekâ teknolojilerinin niş medya ve gazetecilik pratikleri üzerindeki etkilerini inceleyen güncel uluslararası akademik literatürü sistematik bir biçimde ele almaktadır. Araştırmanın temel amacı, alandaki kuramsal yönelimleri, metodolojik eğilimleri ve ampirik bulguları bütünleşik bir çerçevede sunmaktır. Bu doğrultuda Web of Science, Scopus ve Google Scholar veri tabanlarında kapsamlı bir tarama yürütülmüştür. PRISMA protokolü çerçevesinde belirlenen ve 2020-2026 yılları arasındaki güncel literatürden seçilen çalışmalar, tematik sentez yöntemiyle analiz edilmiştir. Bulgular, yapay zekânın niş medya ekosisteminde dört ana eksende dönüştürücü bir rol oynadığını göstermektedir: (i) hiperyerel ve topluluk temelli gazetecilikte otomatik içerik üretimi, (ii) ideolojik ve alternatif medyada algoritmik yaygınlaştırma ve kişiselleştirilmiş yankı odaları, (iii) konu odaklı dikey yayıncılıkta büyük dil modellerinin araçsallaştırılma pratikleri ve (iv) platforma bağımlı girişimci gazetecilikte yapay zekâ destekli izleyici analitiği. Araştırmada; algoritmik gazetecilik, insan-makine iş birliği, veri etiği, şeffaflık, algoritmik önyargı, haber çeşitliliği ve yapay zekâ okuryazarlığı temalarının merkezî tartışma hatlarını oluşturduğu tespit edilmiştir. Bu tarama, yapay zekânın niş medyada hem demokratik potansiyeli artıran hem de mevcut eşitsizlikleri derinleştiren dikotomik yapısını açıkça ortaya koymaktadır. Araştırma aynı zamanda insan-makine iş birliği modellerine, algoritmik hesap verebilirliğe ve izleyici çalışmalarına duyulan kritik ihtiyacı vurgulamaktadır.

Keywords

• yapay zekâ
• niş medya
• algoritmik gazetecilik
• otomatik haber üretimi
• büyük dil modelleri

The Transformation of Niche Media and Journalism in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

This study systematically examines the current international academic literature investigating the impact of artificial intelligence technologies on niche media and journalistic practices. The main objective is to present theoretical orientations, methodological trends, and empirical findings in an integrated framework. To this end, we conducted a comprehensive search in the Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases. We analysed studies selected from the literature between 2020 and 2026, as defined by the PRISMA protocol, using thematic synthesis. The findings demonstrate that artificial intelligence plays a transformative role in the niche media ecosystem along four main axes: (i) automated content generation in hyperlocal and community-based journalism, (ii) algorithmic dissemination and personalised echo chambers in ideological and alternative media, (iii) instrumentalisation practices of large language models in topic-focused vertical publishing, and (iv) AI-assisted audience analytics in platform-dependent entrepreneurial journalism. The research examines algorithmic journalism, human-machine collaboration, data ethics, transparency, algorithmic bias, news diversity, and AI literacy as central themes. This analysis clearly reveals the dichotomous nature of AI in niche media, where it both enhances democratic potential and deepens existing inequalities. The research also highlights the critical need for human-machine collaboration models, algorithmic accountability, and audience studies.

Keywords

• artificial intelligence
• niche media
• algorithmic journalism
• automated news production
• large language models

References

1. Alencar, A. (2020). Mobile communication and refugees: An analytical review of the academic literature. Mobile Media & Communication, *8*(3), 443–461. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12802
2. Asadi, S., & Sultana, T. (2026). Caught in the AI Current: J-School Educators’ Disruption, Adaptation and Future Readiness in the Global South—Insights from Bangladesh. Journalism & Mass Communication Educator, 81(3), 247-268. https://doi.org/10.1177/10776958251407392
3. Beckett, C. (2021). The journalism AI report: New powers, new responsibilities. LSE Polis JournalismAI Project. https://www.lse.ac.uk/media-and-communications/polis/JournalismAI/The-report
4. Beckett, C., Sanguinetti, P., & Palomo, B. (2023). New frontiers of the intelligent journalism. In Blurring boundaries of journalism in digital media: new actors, models and practices (pp. 275-288). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
5. Budarick, J., & King, D. (2008). Framing ideology in the niche media: The Koori Mail’s construction of the Redfern riots: The Koori Mail’s construction of the Redfern riots. Journal of Sociology, 44(4), 355-371. https://doi.org/10.1177/1440783308097126
6. Budarick, J. (2017). Ethnic minority media and the public sphere: The case of African-Australian media producers. Journal of Sociology, 53(2), 303–317. https://doi.org/10.1177/1440783316657430
7. Couldry, N. ve Mejias, U. A. (2020). The costs of connection: How data is colonizing human life and appropriating it for capitalism. Stanford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soz172
8. Cools, H., & Diakopoulos, N. (2024). Uses of generative AI in the newsroom: Mapping journalists’ perceptions of perils and possibilities. Journalism Practice. https://doi.org/10.1080/17512786.2024.2394558

9. Diakopoulos, N. (2019). Automating the news: How algorithms are rewriting the media. Harvard University Press. https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.4159/9780674239302/html
10. Dodds, T., Mine, N., Helberger, N., Guzman, A. L., & Diakopoulos, N. (2026). AI hype in journalism: Visibility, power, and the politics of media narratives. Digital Journalism, 14(2), 207-219. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2026.2630187
11. Dodds, T., Zamith, R. ve Lewis, S. C. (2025). The AI turn in journalism: Disruption, adaptation, and democratic futures. Journalism, 27(3), Makale 14648849251343518. https://doi.org/10.1177/14648849251343518
12. Gondwe, G. (2023). ChatGPT and the Global South: How are journalists in sub-Saharan Africa engaging with generative AI? Online Media and Global Communication, 2(2), 228–249. https://doi.org/10.1515/omgc-2023-0023
13. Gulyas, A. ve Baines, D. (Ed.). (2020). The Routledge companion to local media and journalism. Routledge.
14. Gutierrez Lopez, M., Porlezza, C., Cooper, G., Makri, S., MacFarlane, A. ve Missaoui, S. (2022). A question of design: Strategies for embedding AI-driven tools into journalistic workflows. Digital Journalism, 11(3), 484–503. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2022.2043759
15. Harte, D., Williams, A. ve Turner, J. (2020). Recalibrating hyperlocal news: The civic value of UK hyperlocal community journalism. Journalism Practice, 14(6), 648–665. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2014.965932
16. Heft, A., Mayerhöffer, E., Reinhardt, S. ve Knüpfer, C. (2020). Beyond Breitbart: Comparing right-wing digital news infrastructures in six Western democracies. Policy & Internet, 12(1), 20–45. https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.219
17. Helberger, N., & Diakopoulos, N. (2022). The European AI act and how it matters for research into AI in media and journalism. Digital Journalism, 11(9), 1751-1760. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2022.2082505
18. Holt, K., Figenschou, T. U. ve Frischlich, L. (2020). Key dimensions of alternative news media. Digital Journalism, 8(7), 860–869. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2019.1625715
19. Lindgren, M. (2023). Intimacy and emotions in podcast journalism: A study of award-winning Australian and British podcasts. Journalism Practice, 17(4), 704-719.
20. Foladori Inverizzi, S., & Levin, L. G. (2023). La comunicación científica de la pandemia de COVID-19 en el periódico brasileño Folha de S. Paulo en tres periodos de análisis. https://doi.org/10.22323/3.06020204
21. Nieborg, D. B., & Poell, T. (2018). The platformization of cultural production: Theorizing the contingent cultural commodity. New media & society, 20(11), 4275-4292. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444818769694
22. Nielsen, R. K. ve Ganter, S. A. (2022). The power of platforms: Shaping media and society. Oxford University Press.
23. Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., ... ve Moher, D. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, 372, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71
24. Petticrew, M. ve Roberts, H. (2006). Systematic reviews in the social sciences: A practical guide. Blackwell.
25. Rahmawati, F. (2024). Collaboration of artificial intelligence and journalists in online media from the perspective of human-machine communication. Kalijaga Journal of Communication, 6(1), 103-118. https://doi.org/10.14421/kjc.61.06.2024
26. Schäfer, M. S. ve Painter, J. (2021). Climate journalism in a changing media ecosystem. WIREs Climate Change, 12(1), e675. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcc.675
27. Simon, F. M. (2022). Uneasy bedfellows: AI in the news, platform companies, and the issue of journalistic autonomy. Digital Journalism, 10(8), 1354–1374. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2022.2063150
28. Suherman, A., Maulana, H. F. ve Hasrullah, H. (2026). Sustaining hyperlocal journalism with generative AI: Business model innovation and ethical tensions in Indonesian digital newsrooms. Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society, Baskıda. https://doi.org/10.1108/JICES-07-2025-0162
29. Thomas, J. ve Harden, A. (2008). Methods for the thematic synthesis of qualitative research in systematic reviews. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 8, 45. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2288-8-45
30. Tucker, J. A., Guess, A., Barberá, P., Vaccari, C., Siegel, A., Sanovich, S., Stukal, D. ve Nyhan, B. (2020). Social media, political polarization, and political disinformation: A review of the scientific literature. Hewlett Foundation. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3144139
31. Usher, N. (2021). News for the rich, white, and blue: How place and power distort American journalism. Columbia University Press.
32. Zoizner, A., Matthes, J., Corbu, N., de Vreese, C. H., Esser, F., Koc-Michalska, K., ... & Zilinsky, J. (2025). Can AI-attributed news challenge partisan news selection? Evidence from a conjoint experiment. The International Journal of Press/Politics, 19401612251342679. https://doi.org/10.1177/19401612251342679