Global Journalism Research

Introduction and Examples

Global Journalism Research M. Loffelholz & D. H. Weaver, editors

Peter Berglez: Global Journalism

1.  A style of reporting and analyzing news events (and issues) with a global context

2.  People: Comparing journalists around the world; studies of how journalists do their jobs

3.  Reporting from or about other countries: a.  International news reporting b.  Differences in news coverage

1.  A style of reporting and analyzing news events (and issues) with a global context

2.  People: Comparing journalists around the world; studies of how journalists do their jobs

3.  Reporting from or about other countries: a.  International news reporting b.  Differences in news coverage

Research can take any one of these as its focus.

Peter Berglez says global journalism is “an emerging news style.”

Berglez is a Swedish researcher in communications, and an associate professor at Örebro University, Sweden.

Peter Berglez

�  Berglez, P. (2008). What is global journalism? Journalism Studies, 9(6), 845–858.

�  Choose a news topic, such as climate change, or deforestation

�  Compare and analyze news coverage about that topic from many different sources

�  Content analysis: Look for the elements (identified by Berglez) that indicate the global style Peter Berglez

�  Loss of rainforests �  Palm oil plantations (perkebunan kelapa sawit) �  Orang-‐utan habitats

� Migrant workers (workers from Indonesia, working in other countries)

�  Human rights (especially in Papua; and also, attacks on religious freedom in all provinces)

Berglez’s “global issues” and content analysis of news reports represent only one possibility for a research agenda.

�  Part I: Introduction to Journalism Research

�  Part II: Theories of Journalism Research

�  Part III: Methodology and Methods of Journalism Research

�  Part IV: Selected Paradigms and Findings of Journalism Research

�  Part V: The Future of Journalism Research Published 2008. M. Loffelholz &

D. H. Weaver, editors

Published 2008. M. Loffelholz & D. H. Weaver, editors

The book provides a summary of research about journalism from around the world, starting from the 1930s—but focusing on what’s new. It explains trends in journalism research and suggests new paths for the future.

Published 2008. M. Loffelholz & D. H. Weaver, editors

Peter Berglez

�  Many OLD studies are focused on the audience and “media effects”

�  OLD studies about journalists and newsrooms often were anecdotal — NOT empirical

�  Today, the production of news and news products has become a NEW focus of study

�  Comparisons among and between different countries: Also well received (also NEW)

�  Empirical methods dominate: content analysis, surveys, and systematic observation

5 Five theoretical approaches to research about journalism

“Efforts to differentiate between journalism, public relations, advertising and propaganda … are all rather new. But all these persuasive systems can be analyzed on three social levels”: �  Organizations � Markets (Economies) �  Society

—Rühl, p. 32, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

“In this view, journalism is always dependent on a broader societal system, which can be socio-‐historically identified.”

—Loffelholz, p. 20, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

“In this view, journalism is always dependent on a broader societal system, which can be socio-‐historically identified.”

—Loffelholz, p. 20, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

This is different from an older style of journalism research that focused on the individual, e.g. a reporter or an editor (for example, White’s 1950 study about “Mr. Gates”), or one media organization.

Characteristics of a systems approach: �  Analysis of different spheres, contexts or problems (not individual “subjects”).

�  Identification of different (separate) systems that influence or affect each other (e.g., the national political system, and the national print media or newspaper system).

�  Identification of boundaries between systems.

—Görke & Scholl, 2006, pp. 645–646

“In general, systems solve specific problems within and for societies. That is what we call the function of a specific social system.” (my italics) “Modern society organizes itself by delegating different functions to specialized societal systems in order to cope with societal problems …”

—Görke & Scholl, 2006, pp. 646–647

Although Rühl does not mention it in his chapter, the field theory of Pierre Bourdieu has much in common with the theory of social systems that Rühl discusses—which is based on the work of Niklas Luhmann (who, like Rühl, is German). However, systems theory is not the basis for Bourdieu, whose work is characterized by struggle (between and within fields) and the “polarity” of a field (autonomy vs. outside, or heteronomous, forces).

—Rühl, pp. 28–38, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

� Mabweazara, H. M. (2011). Newsmaking practices and professionalism in the Zimbabwean press. Journalism Studies, 5(1), 100–117.

EXAMPLE

�  Ethnographic approach: In-‐depth semi-‐structured interviews

� More than 40 journalists �  From 6 Zimbabwe newspapers (2 dailies, 4 weeklies; in 2 cities)

�  Theory section refers to “sociology of news” tradition (e.g., Schudson) as well as Tuchman, Zelizer, etc.

�  Findings and conclusion include references to social systems

—Mabweazara, 2011, pp. 102, 103 EXAMPLE

Example from findings: “The sourcing routines are entrenched in the dynamics of the political context as journalists selectively refer only to those sources that consolidate their newsrooms’ political positioning. The processes of sourcing stories in the newsrooms … also involves carefully selecting and cultivating new sources whose political orientation rubber stamp the newspapers’ editorial slants.”

—Mabweazara, 2011, p. 108 EXAMPLE

Example from conclusions: “[N]ewsmaking practices and professional cultures in Zimbabwe can be seen as shaped by a combination of factors that include internal organisational and occupational demands, as well as the wider socio-‐political and economic factors. … the Anglo-‐American model of journalism does not fit the rest of the world. In particular, the Zimbabwean case shows how the generic Anglo-‐American ideals of journalism tend to blind researchers to actual situations in various contexts of journalism practice.”

—Mabweazara, 2011, p. 114 EXAMPLE

Classic readings include: �  Adorno, The Culture Industry �  Durkheim, The Division of Labor in Society �  Weber, Economy and Society �  Wiener, Cybernetics Helpful (and short): �  Görke, A., & Scholl, A. (2006). Niklas Luhmann’s theory of social systems and journalism research. Journalism Studies, 7(4), 644–655.

�  Critical theory, not quantitative �  Focus on readers, viewers, audiences �  Intersection of politics, economics and culture �  Production and circulation of meaning � Message senders (corporate “big media”) and message receivers; encoding/decoding (Hall, 1973)

�  The ideological practices of journalism (not the professional practices)

—Hartley, pp. 39–41, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

“If ‘everyone is a journalist’ …” (because of the Internet and social media), researchers have a whole new arena to explore. “For the consumer (reading public) is transformed into the producer (journalist).”

—Hartley, p. 42, in Global Journalism Research (2008) (Italics in the original.)

A cultural studies approach to journalism research will focus on how the consumers of journalism make meaning from the products of journalism. Such research will also examine a broader definition of “journalism,” exterior to the professional and corporate practices and products, and pay attention to producers who would not have been called “journalists” in the past.

—Hartley, pp. 44–45, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

“Seeing journalism as culture thus opens journalism’s definition to activities that go under the radar of conventional views of what journalism does. Under consideration here are alternative venues like the Internet and camera phones, opinion-‐driven formats like cartoons and citizens’ views, and forums situated explicitly on journalism’s margins like the satirical comedy show and reality television” (Zelizer, 2008, p. 88).

Zelizer, B. (2008). How communication, culture, and critique intersect in the study of journalism. Communication, Culture & Critique, 1(1), 86–91.

�  Sanderson, J. (2010). “The nation stands behind you”: Mobilizing social support on 38pitches.com. Communication Quarterly, 58(2), 188–206.

EXAMPLE

�  “[T]he Internet and the accessibility of its computer-‐mediated communication (CMC) channels afford professional athletes the capability to bypass sports journalists and communicate messages directly to fans …” (p. 189)

�  “This article presents an interpretive analysis of blog readers’ comments in response to two entries posted by Boston Red Sox pitcher, Curt Schilling, on his blog … which described two problematic incidents he faced …” (p. 189)

�  “Schilling seems to use his blog to reinforce his identity as an active sports media participant and as a sports journalist critic” (p. 192).

—Sanderson, 2010 EXAMPLE

As a specific case study, Sanderson’s (2010) article does not follow a typical cultural studies approach. However, Sanderson does explore the idea that a sports star can be both an active participant in professional sport and also “a journalist” and media critic, using his own blog. Research method: Case study. “An interpretive, thematic analysis was conducted of 1,337 blog postings” [comments] that appeared on two blog entries written by Curt Schilling on 38pitches.com. The author identified two significant themes in the blog readers’ responses to Schilling (identity validation and collective significance). EXAMPLE

“If blog readers legitimize professional athletes taking their grievances directly to blogs, both sports organizations and mass media outlets may increasingly be circumvented. Professional athletes then become empowered and bypass traditional reporting channels and, through support networks that emerge on their blogs, gain a sympathetic audience.”

—Sanderson, 2010, p. 201

EXAMPLE

Recommended reading: �  Bruns, A. (2005). Gatewatching: Collaborative Online News Production

�  Durham and Kellner, Eds. (2006). Media and Cultural Studies: Keyworks (Revised Edition)

�  Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide

�  Zelizer, B. (2008). How communication, culture, and critique intersect in the study of journalism. Communication, Culture & Critique, 1(1), 86–91.

�  The newsroom is an organizational structure, operating inside the larger media organization.

�  Structures (including work practices) in the organization constrain what reporters can and cannot do.

“These structures affect the way news is produced because they influence what journalists report, what news an editor writes, and also the decisions about what should be published.”

—Altmeppen, p. 55, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

Organizational studies can: �  Compare work in different news organizations �  Identify and analyze the division of labor in a newsroom

�  Identify and analyze chain-‐of-‐command �  Analyze interactions between departments, e.g., between the advertising staff and the newsroom

—Altmeppen, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

“In nearly all cases of organizational research on journalism, researchers attempt comparisons.” Most current research focuses on “the causes and consequences of structural change induced through new requirements for the newsroom, such as marketing orientation, and being more conscious of the needs of audiences.”

—Altmeppen, pp. 59, 60, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

�  Reich, Z. (2011). Comparing reporters’ work across print, radio, and online. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 88(2), 285–300.

EXAMPLE

“This paper seeks to help resolve the scholarly dispute regarding distinctiveness of reporting patterns across media by studying how reporters actually obtain their news information.”

—Reich, 2011, p. 286

EXAMPLE

“This paper seeks to help resolve the scholarly dispute regarding distinctiveness of reporting patterns across media by studying how reporters actually obtain their news information.”

—Reich, 2011, p. 286

To do so, Reich interviewed reporters at 3 daily newspapers, 3 radio stations, and 3 websites, all in Israel (where Reich is a university professor).

EXAMPLE

3 daily newspapers, 3 radio stations, and 3 websites:

Total number of reporters interviewed: 80

4 Research Questions Do print, radio, and online reporters: �  Invest similar effort to obtain raw news information? � Maintain similar source relations? �  Treat their sources with similar levels of skepticism? � Maintain a similar newswork structure?

—Reich, 2011, pp. 288–289 EXAMPLE

Findings: �  Print reporters “do not use substantially more sources per item, more legwork, more initiative, or more cross-‐checking; they do … rely more on leaks and less on PR contributions [than the radio and online reporters].”

�  “[D]ifferences among media during the early stages of news reporting were found to be minor …”

�  “These findings suggest that the studied media are not unique factories of news, but rather unique packing and distribution houses of similarly obtained raw materials.”

—Reich, 2011, pp. 294–296 EXAMPLE

Recommended reading: �  Boczkowski, P. J. (2004). Digitizing the News: Innovation in Online Newspapers.

�  Deuze, M., Ed. (2011). Managing Media Work. �  Gans, H. J. (1979). Deciding What’s News: A Study of CBS Evening News, NBC Nightly News, Newsweek and Time.

�  Giddens, A. (1984). The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration.

�  Shoemaker, P. J., & Reese, S. D. (1996). Mediating the Message: Theories of Influence on Mass Media Content.

�  A focus on the mind of the journalist: How individual’s decisions are made, value judgments, etc.

�  Attitudes; perceptions. �  The theory of “shared reality”: Journalists are expected to extract the same information from (for example), a press conference.

“Journalists have to decide what is true, what is relevant, and what is, in a moral sense, good or bad.”

—Donsbach, pp. 66–68, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

Journalists’ decisions are affected by their “in-‐group”: Other journalists. As peers, other journalists “represent professional norms. Therefore, they are, from the journalist’s point of view, perceived as the most legitimate influence on his or her decision-‐making.”

—Donsbach, p. 68, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

Factors affecting a journalist’s daily decision-‐making: �  Severe time constraints �  Pressure from competition �  Absence of objective criteria (in the situation) �  Risk of public failure


News ideologies and news frames: Repeated patterns in news coverage “can, at least to a certain extent, be explained by journalists’ need to validate their professional decisions about what is newsworthy: because similar events have been covered before, something that fits the pattern will be covered with higher priority” later on.


�  Besley, J. C., & McComas, K. A. (2007). Reporting on fairness in civic life: Interviews with journalists about writing on local political leaders. Journalism Practice, 1(3), 339–355.

EXAMPLE

�  Telephone interviews with 19 local newspaper

reporters and 5 television reporters (total: 24 interviews) based in several cities, in one U.S. state.

�  Interviews lasted 20 to 30 minutes. �  First focused on questions designed to find out what the journalists considered to be “making a fair decision,” related to decisions made by elected officials.

�  “The interview then turned to questions about … the main ways that fairness content appears in stories—including the relative role of journalists’ news judgments and the use of sources.”

—Besley & McComas, 2007, p. 343 EXAMPLE

Findings: The journalists indicated “that they would be more likely to dig into a story if they personally believed that unfairness was occurring or if one of their sources made a convincing argument about unfairness …” Journalists seemed reluctant to name “fairness” as something they look for when they report about public officials, but on the other hand, they regarded evidence of “unfairness” as newsworthy.


Findings: “Most of the journalists emphasized one or another of these dimensions in their responses, with the most focus put on (1) issues of voice, including representation of all sides of an issue, and (2) corruption and favoritism …” The authors based their questions on the scholarly literature about justice, with the idea that the public’s perceptions about justice in their government are closely related to journalism’s role of informing the people about their leaders.


Conclusions: Journalists do use judgments about fairness when they decide “to investigate and report on political authorities.” “[T]he results … suggest that journalists are particularly keen to cover stories where leaders fail to live up to some defined standard of behavior. Behavior by leaders to deny citizens a legitimate voice in policy-‐making may prove especially relevant to working journalists.”


Recommended reading: �  Gans, H. J. (1979). Deciding What’s News: A Study of CBS Evening News, NBC Nightly News, Newsweek and Time.

�  Lippmann, W. (1922). Public Opinion. �  Mindich, D.T.Z. (1998). Just the Facts: How “Objectivity” Came to Define American Journalism.

�  Patterson, T. E., & Donsbach, W. (1996). News decisions: Journalists as partisan actors. Political Communication, 13(4), 455–468.

Like the other approaches discussed here, a gender approach cuts across other categories, including cultural studies and psychology. A focus on journalism work and workers: �  How women’s experiences as reporters differ from men’s (beats; story assignments)

� Management, promotion, pay —Robinson, pp. 79–89, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

In her chapter, Robinson focuses only on women in journalism organizations, especially “the glass ceiling.” Another branch of gender studies and journalism is the analysis of how women appear in the products of journalism: As sources, as objects of reporting, as people in photographs.

—Robinson, pp. 79–89, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

Gender studies are (or can be) distinct from feminism, which is (often) a political ideology. Gender studies positions gender “as a primary category of social organization, rather than a secondary add-‐on … [to] class, education, ethnicity, and religion.” Gender structures identity.

—Robinson, p. 80, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

Journalism as a culture: �  “[J]ournalists develop a special worldview with unique sets of ideals, values, and rules.”

�  “[J]ournalism varies from country to country and from one epoch to another.”

Thus, the position of women in journalism (both as workers and as objects in news coverage) differs among places and among periods of time.

—Robinson, p. 81, in Global Journalism Research (2008)

�  Armstrong, C. L., Boyle, M. P., & McLeod, D. M. (2012). A global trend: How news coverage of protests reinforces gender stereotypes. Journalism Studies, 13(4), 633–648.

EXAMPLE

Hypotheses:

�  In news stories about social protest, mentions of men will be more frequent than mentions of women.

�  “Female sources will appear more frequently when they are supporting protest activities than when they are opposing protest activities.” (my italics)

�  “The disparity between male and female sources in news coverage will increase as the goals and tactics of the protesters become more deviant.” (my italics)

—Armstrong et al., 2012, pp. 637–638 EXAMPLE

“This study suggests that cross-‐cultural factors—mainly societal views about women and their roles in society—may be particularly relevant for determining the emphasis placed on women in protest news. That is, in areas of the world in which more patriarchal views of women are held, male sources will be more likely than female sources to be more [prominent].”

—Armstrong et al., 2012, pp. 637–638 EXAMPLE

Method:

�  Content analysis of 220 newspaper stories dealing with protest events, 2007–2009.

�  Total of 13 newspapers selected to create the sampling frame.

�  All newspapers in the English language.

�  International: 6 newspapers from North America;

4 from Asia; 3 from Middle East.

—Armstrong et al., 2012, pp. 639 EXAMPLE

Findings:

“Consistent with prior research … men appeared more frequently than women as subjects of stories, as sources in stories, and in bylines. Further, the findings indicated that gender portrayals in protest coverage differ based on the region of the world where the newspaper is located as well as the tactics of the protest group. … “[W]omen were most likely to appear in coverage when the story was nonpolitical, the tactics were more peaceful, and when the disparity between male and female sources was lower.” (my italics)

—Armstrong et al., 2012, p. 642 EXAMPLE

Recommended reading: �  Armstrong, C. L. (2004). The influence of reporter gender on source selection in newspaper stories. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 81(1), pp. 139–154.

�  Carter, Branston, & Allan, Eds. (1998). News, Gender, and Power.

�  Eichler, M. (1980). The Double Standard: A Feminist Critique of the Social Sciences.

�  Zelizer, B. (1993). Journalists as interpretive communities. Critical Studies in Mass Communication, 10(2), 219–237.

�  Social systems and their interactions, e.g., the journalism system and the political system

�  Cultural studies: Focus on the audience, the consumers, and how they make meaning from media messages

�  Organizational studies: Structures, constraints, and structural change in news organizations

�  Psychology: How journalists think about news values and decide what is newsworthy

�  Gender: (1) Women as newsworkers, managers; (2) women appearing in news coverage

Summary

Mindy McAdams University of Florida

[email protected]

Global Journalism Research

News & Politics

Transcript of Global Journalism Research