Showing papers in "Journalism Practice in 2007"
TL;DR: This article presented an analysis of everyday news work drawing on the theoretical framework of Pierre Bourdieu and using ethnographic material from observations of editorial practices in a Danish television newsroom as a case study.
Abstract: What goes on in editorial conferences and how do news journalists decide what is newsworthy? The journalistic “gut feeling” is an important part of the professional self-understanding of journalists and editors expressing how news judgements seem self-evident and self-explaining to the practitioners. This article presents an analysis of everyday news work drawing on the theoretical framework of Pierre Bourdieu and using ethnographic material from observations of editorial practices in a Danish television newsroom as a case study. The analytical concepts “journalistic doxa”, “news habitus” and “editorial capital” are put to empirical work on close-up observations of journalistic practices in editorial conferences and two types of news values are identified as part of the journalistic “gut feeling”: the explicit orthodox/heterodox news values which are part of the sphere of journalistic judgement, and the implicit, silent doxic news values which are part of the sphere of journalistic doxa. An important task...
339 citations
TL;DR: In a time of declining public trust in news, loss of advertising revenue, and an increasingly participatory, self-expressive and digital media culture, journalism is in the process of rethinking and reinventing itself as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: In a time of declining public trust in news, loss of advertising revenue, and an increasingly participatory, self-expressive and digital media culture, journalism is in the process of rethinking and reinventing itself. In this paper, the authors explore how journalism is preparing itself for an age of participatory news: a time where (some of) the news is gathered, selected, edited and communicated by professionals and amateurs, and by producers and consumers alike. Using materials from case studies of emerging participatory news practices in the Netherlands, Germany, Australia and the United States, the authors conclude with some preliminary recommendations for further research and theorize early explanations for the success or failure of participatory journalism.
337 citations
TL;DR: This article examined the words of 35 journalists to explore how technology is causing marked evolutions in newspaper journalism's missions, routines, and relationships with sources and readers, finding that news considerations center on personal experience for journalists and their audiences.
Abstract: Journalists explain daily happenings according to a uniform mission, agreed-upon routines, and established societal relationships. Their product—American newspaper stories in this case—helps shape the social order by controlling information dissemination in a structured environment. As a result, the press enjoys the status of a political institution that operates with some authority. When technology allows the audience to take over some control in this process, its institutional dynamics shift. This research examined the words of 35 journalists to explore how technology is causing marked evolutions in newspaper journalism's missions, routines, and relationships with sources and readers. This paper found that news considerations center on personal experience for journalists and their audiences. The evidence indicates that journalists are sharing their ability to tell the day's news with people outside of the institution. Eventually, the changes in news production will have implications for the press's ulti...
130 citations
TL;DR: This paper examined what content is being charged for and why, and investigated how the 12 newspapers studied are balancing the need to develop additional revenue streams with the demand for traffic in a buoyant advertising market; the extent to which cannibalisation of the print parent is still a concern; the compl...
Abstract: This study uses qualitative research interviews and a survey to quantify and analyse business models at online newspapers in the UK. Senior editors and executives reported that news websites rely on advertising income to a greater extent than their print counterparts. Despite this, British news sites continue to charge users for some content, although to a varying degree. The fact that online editions still contribute barely a tenth of total revenues explains this experimental approach towards business strategy. Although paid-for content has mostly failed as a mechanism for the online news business in the past, changes in technology and net culture may mean that it is becoming an option again. The authors examine what content is being charged for and why, and investigate: how the 12 newspapers studied are balancing the need to develop additional revenue streams with the demand for traffic in a buoyant advertising market; the extent to which cannibalisation of the print parent is still a concern; the compl...
74 citations
TL;DR: The number of undergraduate journalism students in Britain has risen fivefold since 1994/95 as journalism education undergoes the rapid expansion previously seen in other countries as discussed by the authors, which has led to a growing proportion of journalism graduates in newsrooms, despite residual, industry concern that journalism is not the best first degree subject for would-be journalists.
Abstract: The number of undergraduate journalism students in Britain has risen fivefold since 1994/95 as journalism education undergoes the rapid expansion previously seen in other countries. This study analyses this expansion in Britain, demonstrating that it has led to a growing proportion of journalism graduates in newsrooms, despite residual, industry concern that journalism is not the best first degree subject for would-be journalists. The study examines findings from a survey of British journalism undergraduates concerning what motivated them to become journalists. Its first phase was conducted when, or soon after, 661 students arrived at 10 British universities. Students were also asked about ambitions regarding specialisms in journalism. A similar questionnaire was administered to a “completion” sample of 234 students shortly before these university programmes ended. This asked why some had by then rejected journalism as a career. Findings are contextualised with international studies of journalism students.
60 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an overview of modern newsroom models in Central European countries, especially Austria, Germany and Switzerland, and suggest that modernized newsrooms can increase speed and journalistic quality.
Abstract: This paper is an overview of modern newsroom models in Central European countries, especially Austria, Germany and Switzerland. Editorial job divisions, as well as routines and work practices, in newspaper and news agency newsrooms, have experienced revolutionary changes in these countries—not only through the global trend towards convergence, but also by bridging traditional barriers between departments and by introducing more flexible structures. Large and open newsrooms, for example, are now becoming increasingly popular. Using a combination of qualitative and quantitative data drawn from a case study of the innovations process of the news agency Austria Presse Agentur in Vienna, it is suggested that modernized newsrooms can increase speed and journalistic quality. At the same time building structure and space play an important role in the innovations process of a newsroom. There are significant correlations between satisfaction with the work site and the assessment of rising quality.
59 citations
TL;DR: The use of the term "reflective practice in journalism" is now also used widely in higher education course literature and increasingly it is emerging in discourses relating to journalism research as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: In attempt to define a methodology, journalism scholars use the term “reflective” as a way to distinguish their critical study of journalism from that of a non-practitioner. The phrase “reflective practice in journalism” is now also used widely in higher education course literature and increasingly it is emerging in discourses relating to journalism research. However, the use of the term “reflective” in both cases has not been anchored in meaning. This paper will propose a number of definitions, and will discuss a number of potential approaches that seek to move towards a synthesis of journalism practice and theory. It will start by outlining the current scholarly context for undertaking journalism research, focusing on the rise of “journalist-academics” and the desire for recognition of the value and status of practice within the academy. It will then examine a number of critical models which may shed helpful light on how journalism might be viewed as “research-in-practice”.
59 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined Norwegian journalism students' views about their profession and education at different phases in their career and also outlined the social background of the new generation of journalists.
Abstract: This article examines Norwegian journalism students’ views about their profession and education at different phases in their career and also outlines the social background of the new generation of journalists. The article presents key findings from several surveys of students conducted at the two most popular and prestigious journalism schools in Norway between 2000 and 2004. The main aim is to investigate any development in attitudes to different professional values between the beginning of students’ studies through to their first years as working journalists. What do the journalists of tomorrow consider to be the most important tasks for journalism in society? What motivates them to study journalism? What kind of knowledge, skills and traits are seen as crucial for journalists? And to what extent do the J-schools actually make a difference in the shaping of the next generation of journalists? An important finding is that most professional attitudes seem to stay quite stable from the beginning of studies...
49 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors link crisis communication with journalism's ritual and symbolic functions, such as remembering, celebrating, mourning, and sharing among members of a community during a crisis.
Abstract: The mass media are expected to play a key role in providing relevant and accurate information during a crisis. While numerous studies have explored how well the media perform in providing information during crises, less attention has been given to journalism's ritual aspects, such as those related to remembering, celebrating, mourning and sharing among members of a community. In the culturalist tradition, journalism is as much about ritual and meaning-making as it is about providing information. One of the most important ways of performing this ritual function is through live, on-the-spot journalism—a form of journalism that has becoming increasingly commonplace due to technological developments, and at the very least, it is connected with crisis news coverage. Based on interviews with broadcast media journalists about their decision-making strategies and motives during two crises (11 September 2001 and the Anna Lindh murder in 2003), we link crisis communication with journalism's ritual and symbolic func...
49 citations
TL;DR: In many ways, public relations is a child of journalism, called into being, shaped by and responding to journalism as mentioned in this paper, and in the United Kingdom public relations are proud of its new-found status as...
Abstract: In many ways, public relations is a child of journalism, called into being, shaped by—and responding to—journalism. Whilst in the United Kingdom public relations is proud of its new-found status as...
41 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the practices of sport journalism profession, focusing on the nature of sport journalists' relationships with their sources; their relationship with gatekeepers; and the issue of collusion, between journalists themselves and journalists and their subjects and sources.
Abstract: The profile of sport journalism has increased as the scale and media profile of large-scale international sporting events have escalated. This article considers the ways in which sport journalists have responded to such changes. It concentrates upon the nature of sport journalists’ relationships with their sources; their relationship with gatekeepers; and the issue of collusion, between journalists themselves and journalists and their subjects and sources. Drawing upon extensive periods of participation and observation at the Olympic Games, the FIFA (men's) football World Cup, and international football club and national championships and tournaments, and citing in-depth interviews with a senior wires-based journalist, the authors examine the practices of the sport journalism profession. These are also discussed in the light of journalists’ own published accounts, memoirs and reflections, and the wider, limited literature of research into the professional culture of sport journalism. In conclusion, the ar...
TL;DR: An analysis of award-winning photographs of international events from the annual Pictures of the Year competition is compared to a similar study of Pulitzer Prize-winning photos as discussed by the authors, concluding that the awardwinning photographs, which represent the best of photojournalism, portray international events through a limited number of themes that reinforce a stereotype of developing nations as violent and conflict-torn places.
Abstract: An analysis of award-winning photographs of international events from the annual Pictures of the Year competition is compared to a similar study of Pulitzer Prize-winning photographs. The analysis concludes that the award-winning photographs, which represent the best of photojournalism, portray international events through a limited number of themes that reinforce a stereotype of developing nations as violent and conflict-torn places.
TL;DR: This article investigated occupational stressors among media personnel assigned to work on covering the Iraq War via interviews with 54 journalists from the BBC and Reuters, who worked in Iraq between February and April 2003.
Abstract: This paper investigates occupational stressors amongst media personnel assigned to work on covering the Iraq War via interviews with 54 journalists from the BBC and Reuters, who worked in Iraq between February and April 2003. A range of stressors were identified that could be categorized into three main themes, control over the situation, support from management and grief from the death of colleagues. Journalists not embedded with military units were more likely to report negative physical and emotional health outcomes. The study concludes that hazardous work environments do not, by themselves, cause stress and poor job satisfaction. Rather, organizational factors, the imbalance between the ability to make decisions about how to carry out their job effectively and the perceived rewards of working in such environments appear to have a greater impact on work related stress.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an overview of the entire body of EU-accredited journalists, examining how they are distributed across the various nationalities, the different forms of media and whether an historical evolution can be traced in either distribution.
Abstract: This article sketches a picture of the journalists involved in European Union (EU) reporting. Firstly, it presents an overview of the entire body of EU-accredited journalists, examining how they are distributed across the various nationalities, the different forms of media and whether an historical evolution can be traced in either distribution. Secondly, the mechanisms influencing the news flow on EU topics are described, using information gathered from numerous interviews with EU journalists from 10 European countries. The researchers distinguish structural, geographical, economical and policy-related obstacles influencing the EU newsflow. As an example of a media-related obstacle the authors focus on the privileged position of the Financial Times.
TL;DR: The history of the Pulitzer Prize in Explanatory Journalism has been studied by as discussed by the authors, who synthesize existing historical knowledge of the form, documenting the history of explanatory journalism, and analyzing the explanatory reports that have won the prize.
Abstract: This study of the explanatory report attempts to make a meaningful contribution to the history of the American newspaper by synthesizing existing historical knowledge of the form, documenting the history of the Pulitzer Prize in Explanatory Journalism, and analyzing the explanatory reports that have won the Pulitzer Prize in this category. This study also offers insights from that history to suggest how newspapers in America might improve their products in the service of democracy. A fundamental strategy, as demonstrated in the exemplary reports identified by the Pulitzer juries, is the greater use of storytelling in explanatory journalism. Such a change might help increase readership and better serve the mandate of the American press to strengthen democracy through fostering discourse in the public sphere.
TL;DR: This paper examined 10 recent high-profile cases of journalistic deceptions at major American news organizations, and analyzed deceptive news and authentic news in a comparative perspective, finding that deceptive news stories are more likely than authentic news stories to be filed from a remote location, to be on a story topic conducive to source secrecy, to have more sources, more diverse sources and more hard-to-trace sources.
Abstract: This study examines 10 recent high-profile cases of journalistic deceptions at major American news organizations, and analyzes deceptive news and authentic news in a comparative perspective. Applying disaster incubation theory and normal accident theory to newsrooms, it focuses on how newsroom organizational culture contributes to journalistic deceptions. Results suggest that prior to the final revelation of a reporter's deception, an incubation period occurs during which a “first flag”—an initial warning signal often related to the reporter's earliest work that gives rise to suspicion of authenticity—is overlooked. The study also identifies patterns in deceptive news that distinguish it from authentic news. Deceptive news stories are more likely than authentic news stories to be filed from a remote location, to be on a story topic conducive to source secrecy, to be on the front page (or magazine cover), to contain more sources, more “diverse” sources and more hard-to-trace sources. It is suggested that e...
TL;DR: The strength and independence of news media in different parts of the world often reveal a good deal about the rights and freedoms which citizens enjoy in particular countries as mentioned in this paper, and journalists play a crucial role in this process.
Abstract: The strength and independence of news media in different parts of the world often reveal a good deal about the rights and freedoms which citizens enjoy in particular countries. Journalists play a c...
TL;DR: This article found that only about one in ten news sources had informed the newspaper of the errors they perceived, while many errors were considered too inconsequential to correct, news sources also expressed a sense of futility, that a correction would do little to set the record straight, or worse, that their complaints would either be ignored or draw reprisal from the newspaper.
Abstract: In a cross-market examination of newspaper accuracy, this study tracks errors identified by news sources in 2700 news stories published by US daily metropolitan newspapers. While journalists widely hold that errors are commonly detected and corrected, the study found that only about one in ten news sources had informed the newspaper of the errors they perceived. While many errors were considered too inconsequential to correct, news sources also expressed a sense of futility—that a correction would do little to set the record straight, or worse, that their complaints would either be ignored or draw reprisal from the newspaper. The findings challenge how well the “corrections box” sets the record straight when inaccuracies occur or how well it serves in journalism as a safety valve for the venting of frustrations by wronged news sources.
TL;DR: This article explored the role that journalistic practice plays in telling community members about whether local politicians are behaving fairly and highlighted questions of whether politicians were listening to community members and the degree to which they appeared to take the best interest of citizens to heart.
Abstract: Drawing on procedural justice research from social psychology, this study explores the role that journalistic practice plays in telling community members about whether local politicians are behaving fairly. Qualitative interviews with 24 community journalists working in cities in Upstate New York are used to answer the following research questions: (1) how does content regarding authority fairness find its way into news stories, and (2) what facets of justice—whether distributive, voice, or relational—do journalists emphasize. The interviewed journalists said that they often used their evaluation of local politicians’ fairness in deciding whether to pursue a story. In doing so, these journalists highlighted questions of whether politicians were listening to community members and the degree to which they appeared to take the best interest of citizens to heart. There was little agreement among journalists about the degree to which citizens could adequately make fairness judgments based on local news coverag...
TL;DR: The DIGEST survey as mentioned in this paper provides a brief context to some of the key debates about journalism education, and explores the aims, objectives and qualifications of a range of journalism courses.
Abstract: It is sometimes easy to get caught up in debates about how new technologies have*or, at least, will*reshape the practice and nature of journalism. But amid the excitement of the latest new craze*of reaching ‘‘convergence’’ for instance*we can perhaps lose sight of the continuities, the core values, that exist within the profession. The two accounts from UK practitioners above concerning the training or education that journalists should receive*more than 100 years apart*are, in this respect, remarkably similar. Despite the expansion of mass education throughout the 20th century, the advice given to aspiring journalists today*as in 1892* is that journalism is something to learn on the job rather than to train for by way of preparation. Both quotes indicate a disdain for university education* for intellectualising the profession*and lend support for a more practical apprenticeship system. To many journalists, then, understanding journalism is best achieved ‘‘on the beat’’*well away from the ‘‘talentless individuals’’ who teach in so many media studies classrooms. This DIGEST offers a brief context to some of the key debates about journalism education. The principal aim is to bring together information about a range of journalism courses in a number of countries, and to explore their aims, objectives and qualifications. The research presented here suggests that, even across different countries, the academic study of journalism continues to exist almost in opposition to vocationally based courses. Universities are, of course, responding to the increasing demand for media studies courses by offering hybrid courses which mix theory and practice. But there remains a resistance*and more than a hint of suspicion*amongst many journalists that media studies courses fail to encapsulate accurately the harsh, everyday reality of life ‘‘on the beat’’.
TL;DR: In 2007, there was only one forecast that can be made with certainty about the future of the stock market as mentioned in this paper, and it was based on the prediction made by the authors of this paper.
Abstract: Journalism is going through a period of precipitate change which makes any form of prediction a hazardous activity, but even in 2007 there is one forecast that can be made with certainty about the ...
TL;DR: The authors argue that there are three foundational questions to which we, as news journalism educators, should respond and conclude that the classroom is a place where those responses are given dramatic practical expression.
Abstract: It sounds like a laudable but vainglorious exercise to want to reconcile the diverse ways of teaching news journalism with each other, to show that they share common grounds, are driven by the same concerns and follow the same directions albeit in their own peculiar ways. Nevertheless, I believe that such reconciliation occurs when we ask what it is we are, as educators, responding to when teaching news journalism. I think we are responding to two things. First, a particular set of foundational questions which, when asked, force us to consider the rationale and purpose of news journalism itself. Second, bringing these considerations to light in the classroom where they can be cast into the setting of students who are actually practising news journalism itself. In this paper I argue that there are three foundational questions to which we, as news journalism educators, should respond and conclude that the classroom is a place where those responses are given dramatic practical expression. It is this process,...
TL;DR: Obituary columns pick over the expired human condition and deliver their posthumous review with a formidable exercise of authority; they inform, they enlighten, they entertain; they also have the capacity to offend and wound as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Obituary columns pick over the expired human condition and deliver their posthumous review with a formidable exercise of authority. They inform, they enlighten, they entertain; they also have the capacity to offend and wound. The obituarist's appraisal will be scrutinised by relatives, lovers, antagonists, and acquaintances who remember the characters on the page with a familiarity not necessarily available to the readership at large. At the same time, though, there is a duty to present a complete account so that the cause of historical record is satisfied. In composing these posthumous studies, therefore, writers and editors frequently encounter an ethical dilemma in deciding what measure of intimate information should be revealed. The cause of death (particularly if self-inflicted) and the subject's sexual persuasion appear in this regard as questions of notable complexity. Then there is the matter of qualification for the page itself. Formerly concerned largely with society's more prominent citizens, w...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify the process and criteria for selecting local court cases for press coverage in Dresden daily newspapers and identify a multi-step selection process as a result of which only a fraction of the trials were reported.
Abstract: Court reporting is a regular feature of German daily newspapers and is widely read by a third of German newspaper readers. However, only a modest number of the daily trials find their way into the press. The aim of the present study is to identify the process and criteria for selecting local court cases for press coverage. The study is based on four Dresden daily newspapers whose reporting is examined initially by means of content analysis. The results signal a focus on criminal, rather than civil, law matters as well as trials conducted in the place of publication. A second element of the research involved observation of the selection of criminal law matters at Dresden county court by reporters of the four newspapers. It was possible to identify a multi-step selection process as a result of which only a fraction of the trials were reported. Thirdly, selection factors were identified using guided interviews with court reporters and their editors. Significant factors steering selection included the serious...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a research narrative that critiques the ethics of public servants and identifies three significant windows of illumination when local press coverage made alternative viewpoints known, built understanding and stimulated deliberation, helping to lead the community through a period of crisis.
Abstract: In summer 2001, residents of a small Midwestern town in the United States were confronted with an incomprehensible trauma, thrusting them into a national public health crisis involving toxic mold contamination. The conflict centered on an infected high school campus, fearful and angry community members, and an intractable school board. Assertive coverage by the local press not only provided substantial investigative reporting, but gave focus and voice to an oppressed public. Written from personal experience, this research narrative critiques the ethics of public servants and identifies three significant windows of illumination when local press coverage made alternative viewpoints known, built understanding and stimulated deliberation, helping to lead the community through this period of crisis. As a consequence of this practice of public journalism, the local press demonstrated its vital role in cultivating good citizenship when public stewardship fails.
TL;DR: The article as discussed by the authors offers information about Rupert Murdoch and Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, known to be great journalists in Great Britain, who were branded as the evil media baron who destroyed the cozy atmosphere of Fleet Street, London's journalism center.
Abstract: The article offers information about Rupert Murdoch and Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, known to be great journalists in Great Britain. Accordingly, Murdoch was branded as the evil media baron who destroyed the cozy atmosphere of Fleet Street, London's journalism center. On the other hand, Harmsworth has become known for his concept that successful media empires were highly dependent on continued expansion and evolution. Harmsworth was also titled as later Viscount Northcliffe.
TL;DR: A detailed examination of one such occasion argues that commercial imperatives and tabloid journalistic practices in pursuit of a good story liberated information and views threatening to an un-modernised monarchy as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: British tabloids are viewed as conservative about monarchy. However, on several occasions since Princess Diana's death, criticism of royalty has been extremely shrill. This detailed examination of one such occasion argues that commercial imperatives and tabloid journalistic practices in pursuit of a good story liberated information and views threatening to an un-modernised monarchy. However, it also shows how certain criticisms were deflected and why.