Abstract

This study analyzes the characteristics, activities and results of the laboratories –also known simply as labs– promoted in recent years by certain high-quality international news companies. A comparative study of 31 labs was performed, based on the corporate information offered on their websites and on their Twitter  accounts. This analysis identifies the prototypical structure, tasks, operations and results of the media-promoted labs as of January 2015. The research identifies four main models: 1) labs that develop applications and digital technologies; 2) labs that explore multimedia news storytelling and data journalism formats; 3) labs that promote business projects and startups; and finally, 4) labs focused on training activities and media literacy programs.