Hyperlinking practices in Swedish online news 2007–2013: the rise, fall, and stagnation of hyperlinking as a journalistic tool

Hyperlinks are considered vital to both the Web and to digital journalism. This study utilizes a longitudinal content analysis of hyperlinking practices in Swedish online news from 2007 to 2013 to see how hyperlinking evolves over time. It also compares if and to what extent publishing tradition shapes journalistic practice. The findings primarily show that the overall impact of hyperlinks remains largely unchanged over time but that internal links, while still being most common, decrease in relative importance while external links increase. The general conclusion is that hyperlinks, so far, are not an important aspect of online journalism practice.