Archaeo-media: breaking the binary and building agency in archaeological news reporting

Abstract

The role of news media in the dissemination of archaeological research isbeginning to receive some attention, but this is inadequate when consideringthe scale of the news media as a tool for public archaeology and mass-distribution of archaeological research in digital news sites. Archaeologyneeds to urgently address this oversight and begin to construct appropriateand sustainable working relationships with the news media, founded ona critical evaluation of current strategies, to regulate the information that isdisseminated through this medium. This paper takes a British perspective,though the themes and necessary improvements have global significance.I suggest that we begin to appreciate the role of the archaeologist in theconstruction of knowledge through the mass media by embracing ‘archaeo-media’- a neologism here proposed to explore the intersections and interac-tions between archaeology and news media.