Journalistic Culture in Transition

Project leader:  Esa Väliverronen

Researchers: Mervi Pantti and Tuomo Mörä

Department of Communication, University of Helsinki

2004 –

Funded by the Academy of Finland

Finnish journalism has faced drastic pressures of change in recent decades. Launching of commercial television channels have hardened the competition between television news rooms, the number of news broadcasts have increased and the over-all circulation of dailies have decreased while the circulation of tabloids have increased. For example, the circulation of Helsingin Sanomat, the main daily, started to decrease for the first time in its history in 1990’s.

All three television companies have faced severe financial problems during last few years. Broadcasting times have increased much more than the resources available. Moreover, the costs of digitalisation have been huge. Poor economics have been fought by firing employees. Launching of digital television channels is making the competition of resources and the time of audience ever harder. At the same time the public service function of national broadcasting company Yle has been questioned frequently. Entertainment have become more and more essential part of its broadcasting over the years.

Changing situation have been responded, for one thing, by media convergence. In commercial side the news rooms of television and newspapers are cooperating and in Yle journalists have been educated to work for several desks and media at the same time. They also take increasingly care of technical aspects of the news work.

This study analyzes how these changes have influenced journalistic culture, journalistic content, journalistic practices and the values journalism is based on. The framework is the theory of tabloidization. The methods are interviewing, content analysis and participant observation. The purpose of the research is to create theoretical tools and concepts to study journalistic culture, increase the self understanding of journalists and to provide analytical tools for media critics.

Publications:

Aslama, M. & Pantti, M. (2005): Flagging Finnishness: Reproducing National Identity in Reality Television Series Extreme Escapades”. Forthcoming in Television and New Media.

Mörä, T. (2004): ”Demokratian juurihoitoa: James Carey ja journalismi.” InMörä, Salovaara-Moring & Valtonen (eds.) (2004): Mediatutkimuksen vaeltava teoria. Helsinki: Gaudeamus.

Mörä, T., Salovaara-Moring, I. & Valtonen, S. (eds.) (2004): Mediatutkimuksen vaeltava teoria. Helsinki: Gaudeamus.

Nieminen, H. & Pantti, M. (2004): Media markkinoilla. Helsinki: Loki-kirjat.

Pantti, M. (2005) Masculine Tears, Feminine Tears – and Crocodile Tears: Mourning Olof Palme and Anna Lindh in Finnish Newspapers. Forthcoming in Journalism:

Theory, Practise and Criticism.

Pantti, M. & Wieten, J. (2005): “Obsessed with Audience: Breakfast Television Revisited.” Media, Culture and Society, 1/2005.

Pantti, M. & Wieten, J. (2004): “Infotainment for Breakfast: Production of Early Morning News.” In Angela Schorr and Stefan Seltmann (eds.) Changing Media Cultures in Europe and Abroad. Research On New Ways of Handling Information and Entertainment Content. Berlin: Pabst Science Publishers, 2004.