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Abstract

This article explores the relationship between journalists and civil society actors in promoting the Freedom of Information right in Bulgaria. It emphasizes the importance of civil society as influential actors in the media agenda-building process and presents a new approach to conceptualizing the journalist/non-governmental organization relationship from a cooperative rather than power-distance perspective. The alliance between the Freedom of Information-promoting non-governmental organization and journalists in Bulgaria resulted in (1) increased public awareness of the Freedom of Information rights, (2) increased Freedom of Information law use by citizens and journalists, (3) improved governmental transparency, and (4) enhanced quality of journalistic output. The theoretical and practical relevance of these findings is discussed.

Keywords

Agenda building civil society freedom of information journalism non-governmental organizations

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Blurring the boundaries between journalism and activism: A transparency agenda-building case study from Bulgaria

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