In this study, we sought to highlight the concepts presented in scientific articles to characterize alternative communication and journalism. The search of the data was done through biblio- graphic research through keywords in databases of Intercom, Compós and Ibercom. We also identified articles published in scientific journals qualis A2 and B1 that addressed the theme to constitute the corpus of work. After filtering the data, the articles were cataloged considering the concepts worked by the authors themselves. The analysis of the references used by them made it possible to identify the theoretical lines that define the concept of alternative in com- munication. It was also possible to map the regions of the country and the institutions where this production is most significant. The results indicate that research in this area adopts conceptual differences in the treatment of alternative communication and alternative journalism, defined based on the interpretation made based on the history of these practices in Brazil.