News policy documents exist in most newsrooms, often developed during editorial conferences and workshops and well known among the editorial staff. They play a significant role and are often referred to when journalists discuss the diversity of voices and framing of news stories during daily news conferences.
Internal debates about news selection and news processing take place regularly, and previous news decisions may be openly criticised in the newsroom. Even though policy documents are important as guidelines and recommendations for newsroom work, professional perceptions of newsworthiness are still the single most decisive factor in the news production process. Final news decisions are often based on editorial routines and taken by news editors, but the individual journalist often has space for negotiations about how to develop the news story and has great freedom to decide the framing of the story and the main sources to rely on (Ghersetti, 2012).
Most newsrooms strive to combine weekly or monthly planning, allowing for spontaneous initiatives and investigative reporting according to policies, with the important political events of the day, emerging themes in social media, and suggestions from specialised reporters within the newsroom.
