Case study

The choice of any strategy or method for research depends on three key conditions, namely: the type of research questions posed, the extent of control an investigator has over actual behavioural events and the degree of focus on contemporary as opposed to historical events (Yin, 2003, p. 5). One of the most significant conditions for

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distinguishing and selecting a specific strategy/method rather than others is the type of questions posed (Yin, 2009, p. 8; Yin, 2003, p. 5 & 7). For example, when little is known about the topic, only ‘what’ and ‘how’ questions can be posed, where later such questions can be developed into “a series of more precise questions” (Swanborn, 2010, p. 17). On the other hand, Yin (2003, p. 6) states that the ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions are self-explanatory because they “deal with operational links needing to be traced over time, rather than mere frequencies or incidence”. In this current study, ‘what’ and ‘how’ questions are the questions that have been posed, as follows:

1- What does the content of Kurdish online news sites tell us about the role of online journalism in Kurdistan?

2- What is the attitude of journalists, teachers and legislators to online journalism in the region?

3- What is the historical context in which Kurdish online journalism has developed?

4- How does the Kurdish situation compare to that of other emerging democracies?

5- What can the Kurdish example contribute to a wider understanding of the role of online journalism in the public sphere?

Additionally, the topic of this study is a contemporary and controversial phenomenon, not only in the Kurdistan region, but also across all societies and countries with emerging democracies. In the Kurdistan region of Iraq, as an emerging democracy, this topic is relatively new, but as a result of the rapid evolution of online journalism and the Internet, and their on-going day-to-day expansion, this aspect significantly influences people in their real life. Currently more than 20% of the region’s 5.3 million population have access to the Internet on a daily basis (PUKmedia, 2014; Xendan, 2014), which can be considered numerous Internet users for such an emerging society. To illustrate, by 31 December 2013, of the total population of 32 million Iraqis, including the Kurdistan region, there were almost 3 million Internet users, which constitutes 9.2% of the population (Internet World Stats, 2014). Considering the 20% proportion of the Kurdistan region, it becomes clear that Internet users are even less than 9.2% in the rest of Iraq. Internet users in the Kurdistan region are informed about the latest news relating to their society events, and ideas and opinions about a variety of issues of common interest. Therefore, this study is an intensive investigation of a

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contemporary phenomenon – online journalism in the Kurdistan region. Accordingly, ‘what’ and ‘how’ questions are being asked on a contemporary phenomenon and the researcher has little control, therefore such conditions underpin the use of the case study as a strategy and method in the current research (Swanborn, 2010; Yin, 2003, p. 6).

Case studies focus on the case rather than data collection or analytical processing of data. As Hassanpour (1992, p.37) states, “case studies are distinguished from other research by their concentration on the case rather than a particular form of data gathering, analysis, etc.” Case studies generally include the thorough study of a specific situation of a contemporary phenomenon and are widely used for qualitative research in media and communication. It usually relates to the ethnography, where the aim is to describe and interpret people’s habits and customs and various aspects of culture in their normal situation through using qualitative methods over an extended period of time (Bloor and Wood, 2006, p. 27). Case study is an “empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon in depth and within its real life context, especially when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident” (Yin, 2009, p.18).

As a research method, case study has its own design that includes some key steps such as the techniques of collecting and analysing pertinent data, in addition to an explanation of a sampling plan. The case study method enables researchers to “retain the holistic and meaningful characteristics of real-life events- such as individual life cycles, small group behaviour, organizational and managerial processes, neighbourhood change, school performance, international relations, and the maturation of industries” (Yin, 2009, p. 4). In addition, case study research is most important to describe the assumed causal connections in life interventions, as in the current research these are too compound for survey or experimental strategies (Yin, 2009, p. 19). Case studies are used to display information bearing on cause-effect links and to clarify which reasons created which effects (Yin 1993, p. 5). But since such phenomenon and context are not usually distinguishable in real life, case studies depend on other “technical characteristics, including data collection and analysis strategies” (Yin, 2009). In other words, case studies depend on multiple sources of evidence, with data needing to converge in a triangulating fashion and make use of previous developments of theoretical and academic propositions to guide information

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gathering and analysis (Yin, 2009, p. 18). Triangulation is considered as an approach that employs more than one method of investigation where multiple observers, theoretical perspectives, sources of data, and methodologies are combined in order to achieve more reliable and valid findings (Bryman, 1988, p. 131; Denzin, 1970, p. 310; Webb, et al., 1966). As such, for the empirical collection of materials, this research project used a multiple method of three research methods, which helped in increasing the reliability of the researcher’s results and enabled the management of a wider scope of historical and behavioural subjects and this choice was considered to be one of the strengths of case study investigations. In this case study, primary data from the interviews with the relevant participants presented fundamental information about various aspects of Kurdish media, in particular online journalism and its barriers and influences on freedom of speech. Additionally, the findings from the thematic content analysis of the critical opinion articles, which reflect the extent to which people are allowed to express their critical opinions as a crucial element of freedom of speech, are all used together with related contextual information, including theories, historical and contemporary developments, to gain impact from a wide range of secondary evidence sources. Moreover, the Kurdish media observations helped in gaining information on mainstream news websites, traditional mass media, the process of media production and other aspects (to be explained further in the following sections).

The use of multiple data methods in this qualitative case study for collecting primary and secondary data promoted the accuracy and reliability of the evidence. This also empowered the researcher to deal with a wider range of historical and behavioural issues, but the most important advantage for using multiple sources of evidence was the development of converging lines of inquiry (Yin, 2009, p.115). This ability to use multiple sources is an invaluable advantage of case study methods. Yin (2009, p. 116) determines six sources or techniques of evidence that are commonly used in case studies, which are, documentation, archival records, interviews, direct

observation, participant-observation and physical artefacts. These evidence sources

are complementary to a great extent, and when many of them are used in a case study this will strengthen the study because each of these evidence sources, when used alone, have their own weaknesses (Yin, 2009, p.101). Using triangulation compensates for the potential weaknesses of using a single method and empowers investigators to minimise the biases that are produced, usually in the case of using one research

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method. Besides, researches that rely on multiple methods and generate multiple types of data offer opportunities for comparing and cross-checking the results (Hastings, 2010, p. 1538).

In this case study, the primary data and analysis from the interviews and the critical opinion articles are used together with related theoretical and historical information from a variety of secondary evidence sources. Secondary evidence sources include documentation or document information and archival records relevant to the case study. According to Yin (2009, p. 102), documentation can come in many forms, such as memoranda, e-mail correspondence, agendas, announcements and minutes of meetings, written reports of events, administrative documents, studies of the same subject as the researcher’s study, and news and articles appearing in the newspapers. The documents are very significant and have a direct role in data collection for any case study. They provide further details to confirm and support data from other sources. Besides, they help to ensure the correct spellings, titles and names of organisations that might be mentioned in an interview, and in the meantime, researchers can make inferences to the documents (Yin, 2009, p. 103).

Archival records are another source of evidence that can be used in conjunction with other sources of data for case studies, and may include public use files, service records, geographical maps and charts, organisational records and survey data (Yin, 2009, p. 105). Interviews, on the other hand, are essential and one of the most important sources of information for case studies, because case studies mostly investigate human affairs and real-life phenomena. Therefore, well-informed interviewees can offer significant accurate insights into these affairs and a shorter avenue to data that benefits researchers by helping to pinpoint and recognise other sources of information (the use of interviews, as a tool for collecting data in the case study, will be addressed in more detail in later sections). Another source of evidence is participant-observation, which means that the investigator is not only a passive observer, but directly participates in the events of the study and also assumes some roles in the case study situation. This source of evidence may offer an important opportunity for collecting data, but this depends on the researcher’s ability to get access to groups and situations related to the research that are otherwise inaccessible (Yin, 2009, p. 111-112). In the current case study, this source of evidence has benefitted the process of data collection and the correction and evaluation of such

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data, since the researcher has assumed some roles in journalism in the context of the study and has a relevant background that enabled him to get access to the pertinent information and people.

On the other hand, having an analytical strategy in any case study is very useful because this enables the researcher to benefit from the tools to a high extent and, consequently, it helps to “treat the evidence fairly, produce compelling analytic conclusions, and rule out alternative interpretations” (Yin, 2009, p. 130). Having such a strategy is also useful for enabling the researcher to use tools and make manipulations effectively and to be sure that the data will be analysable. Yin (2009, p. 130-136) identified four main strategies necessary for researchers to follow in a case study so they can achieve their aims. The first and most preferred strategy is following and relying on theoretical propositions that led to the case study. The key aims and design of case studies are based on these propositions, which include a range of research questions, a literature review and new propositions. Relying on propositions is particularly significant because this assists researchers to concentrate on specific and required information, to organise the whole case study, and to examine other explanations. The current case study relied also on such theoretical propositions and a wide range of literature pertinent to the topic, especially theories that focus on the Internet as a medium from the public sphere, participation and media in an emerging democracy. The second analytical strategy for case studies is developing a descriptive framework for arranging the case study systematically. This helps as an alternative when a researcher has difficulty in making the first strategy. In this case study, the researcher collected a lot of data about the historical aspect of Kurdish media, its landscape and they have been provided in the context of the research. The third strategy is using both qualitative and quantitative data in a way that qualitative data remains central to the case study, but meanwhile essential statistical analysis can be used. The researcher also resorted to the use of a range of statistical data collected from secondary sources, such as that from official, professional and academic reports and documents, in order to support the primary qualitative data collected from the interviews. The fourth and final strategy, is defining and testing rival explanations, which according to Yin works with all of the previous three strategies, where “initial theoretical propositions (the first strategy) might have included rival hypotheses; the contrasting perspectives of participants and stakeholders may produce rival descriptive

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framework (the second strategy); and data from comparison groups may cover rival conditions to be examined as a part of using both quantitative and qualitative data (the third strategy)” (Yin, 2009, p. 134-135).