This
article investigates the role of journalists in the media construction of a
socially excluded and stigmatized local authority housing estate. We seek to
identify the ways in which the production context of ‘newsmaking’ is reflected
in such content. Having outlined the problematic ways in which the estate in
question is portrayed, we argue that an increasingly competitive commercial
environment – best evidenced in the marketization of news – is increasing
pressures on journalists to prioritize circulation figures and audience ratings
over journalistic balance. Our analysis of this issue is guided by two
interconnected and over-arching theoretical approaches, namely social exclusion
and political economy. Our analysis is situated squarely in the context of
recent debates concerning the social and political implications of the
increased marketization of news. In reasserting the importance of a critical
sociology of journalism, our case raises fundamental questions about the
practice of journalism and how complex issues such as social exclusion and
poverty are represented in a media setting.